Pokemon Conquest- Nya's Story- The Legend of Ransei
by ShimoRyu
Summary: When Nobunaga the warlord of the Dragon-type kingdom of Dragnor, takes control of the Ice-type kingdom of Nixtorm on his path to conquer the Ransei region, a young warrior named Nya and her Eevee take up their own quest to stop Ransei from becoming his. Basically, the main storyline of Pokémon Conquest with my own ideas thrown in.
1. Chapter 1

As a heads up this story is basically the main story line of Pokémon Conquest, but with my own ideas thrown in. This story actually has two parts to it but that's actually not important! Anyway here's the beginning of part one!

I do not own Conquest or Samurai Warriors I'm just a huge fan of both series!

* * *

Prologue- Leaving Nixtorm

I stared out the window of my room. _Karu's going to be so upset,_ I thought. I had all the things Eevee and I would need laid out on my bed, we were planning to run away from our home in the ice-type kingdom of Nixtorm. Ever since Nobunaga's army took control of the kingdom we had been making plans to leave and tonight we finally were about to carry them out. I placed the items in my bag, sighed, and turned to leave only to find Karu standing in the doorway.

"You're leaving… aren't you little sister?"

"Yes… I am, and you know I have to. I don't trust Nobunaga as far as little Eevee can throw him, and we both know that's not very far."

"You won't make it ten seconds out there on your own… you know that right!?"

"I can if I try!" I walked up and hugged my brother, trying not to cry. Goodbye Karu, I'll miss you…" Then I ran out the door before he could stop me. And since I was away I no longer hid my tears and cried…


	2. Chapter 2

So... Yeah! I accidentally posted chapter two twice so here's the true chapter one! Terribly sorry about that...

* * *

Chapter One- On Our Own

Eevee and I had to make it through two more kingdoms under Nobunaga's control before we were safe. The first was the steel-type kingdom of Valora, and the second was the flying-type kingdom of Avia. As we were leaving Nixtorm Eevee found a very large stick. She nudged it saying it might help later. I told her she was crazy but I took it with us anyway. It wasn't long before Eevee and I were out of Nixtorm and into Valora. And that's when our dangerous journey would truly begin.

* * *

Since we didn't really know how to fight and our only weapon was a stick, getting through to Valora was going to be very difficult. Valora's leader was Ieyasu, and his two best warriors, Tadakatsu and Ina, would likely be guarding the border with their Pokémon, Metagross and Prinplup. Getting past them would certainly not be easy, but my little over-confident Eevee was sure we could do it, and I knew we had to, so we were going to try. First step was deciding how exactly we were supposed to that. We could stand and fight, try to sneak by, or charge straight through and hope we make it out alive. Seeing as Eevee and are aren't much of fighters, (err… more like I'm not much of a fighter…), and our stealth skills, to be kind, are completely awful, we decided to take the charge through approach. (Actually in all fairness I'm excellent at sneaking around, it's just Eevee who fails!)

As we charged towards Valora's border with Avia, we were stopped by one of the warriors. Almost by instinct I wacked him upside the head with the stick, (which now that I think about it it's more like a large branch.) Eevee had a totally shocked look on her face then turned to me and said, "Congratulations! You just knocked Tadakatsu out with a tree branch… LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" I turned to look, and saw that she was right, His Metagross had pretty close to the same shocked look that Eevee just had. "RIGHT BEHIND YOU!" I called running after her.

* * *

It took us about a day to get there but getting through Avia was incredibly easy, seeing as the kingdom isn't on the ground like the others, (it's in the clouds!) all we had to do was simply walk under it. The next step was getting through Illusio. Now that we were out of kingdoms under Nobunaga's control we could carry out our plan. Eevee and I were going to request to be trained by one of the two greatest warriors in Ransei Uesugi Kenshin. Our chances were small and we knew that, but it's worth trying anyway to someday accomplish our goal. So off to Illusio for us!

* * *

After another day and a half or so Eevee and I arrived in Illusio, and quickly made our way towards the castle, however we literally ran into a slight problem. As we were running to the castle we crashed into a woman wearing a white cloak, with an almost blackish-blue under layer of it, along with a golden border around the cloak, and tassels of the same color. She was holding an ornate golden staff in her right hand, and a Froslass floated next to her.

"And just where do you think you're going?"


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Here's Chapter Two! As a note Nya's nickname for Kanetsugu is pronounced "not" due to fact that when I first started this story and the game I thought his name was pronounced "Ka-Not-Su-Gu." After playing Samurai Warriors: Chronicles I learned it was actually pronounced "Ka-Nate-Su-Gu. At least that's how I heard it in the storyline event. Also my brother was the one who came up with Aya's nickname, and he came up with it after watching an episode of Chuck. (If you what the nickname's translation is and you've seen the show you'll now exactly which episode I'm talking about!)

Anyway I'm going to stop Rambling now! Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

I immediately recognized this person as Aya, known to many warriors as Kenshin's terrifying older sister, or as Karu called her Shi no Tenshi. At first I thought we were doomed, but then I remembered why we were there in the first place, and just decided to give a straightforward answer. "I would like to speak to Lord Kenshin." I said in my most respectful voice.

"Why do you wish to speak with Kenshin, and who are you?" I honestly don't think I've ever met anyone as calm as Aya. She speaks incredibly calmly, and I've heard from some of the other warriors in Nixtorm that she never loses her cool. However, I've also heard many others call her an absolute terror on the battlefield, so I decided to respond quite carefully.

"My name is K… Nya." I said almost giving out my full name, "And I was hoping to train under him."

"You wish to train under Kenshin?" She asked and I nodded carefully in response. "Very well come with me

I followed Aya to Illusio castle, which had large purple crystal that seemed to help it float slightly off the ground. However, I was pretty sure they didn't because these crystals were all over the kingdom, but it sure seemed that way! They were all over the interior too. As we walked down the hallways, (In perfect moderately annoying silence I might add!), we finally made it to the room where Kenshin was.

"Kenshin, this girl wishes to speak with you…" Aya stepped back, gesturing for me to step forward.

I stepped up and bowed respectfully, "Lord Kenshin, my name is Nya, I was hoping to be your student. If you don't want to train me I understand completely I just was…"

Kenshin cut me off mid-sentence, "there's no need for so much of an explanation. I will take you on as a student. Besides, Kanetsugu could use someone to compete with, don't you think, sister?" I could have sworn I saw Aya roll her eyes, but as far as I could tell she just nodded in agreement and said, "as long as she doesn't mind random attacks from Terrera all the time."

"I don't mind!" I quickly replied.

"Good," Kenshin replied, "You'll meet up with Aya and Kanetsugu, and begin training first thing in the morning."

* * *

I woke up that morning to the sound of a ringing gong, Eevee shrieked and jumped in surprise. I looked up annoyed in the direction of the gong, and saw a guy about my age with a Kadabra. In his hand was the mallet he used to ring it. "Lady Aya told me to wake you up." He simply said.

"WELL THERE ARE BETTER WAYS OF DOING IT YOU KNOW!" I yelled. "And also, who exactly are you!?"

"I'm Kanetsugu, Lady Aya, and Lord Kenshin's other student. And you shouldn't yell at someone you just met, it's dishonorable!"

"…And waking someone up by loudly ringing a gong isn't?" I asked, still annoyed. _If we have a practice battle Eevee and I are so beating this guy!_

Kanetsugu was quiet for a few seconds, and then said, "Okay you got me on that one… now hurry up! Lady Aya doesn't want to be kept waiting any longer!"

* * *

Kanetsugu and I walked over to the training location. Lucky for Eevee and I we were training on the snowy mountain. Unlucky for Kanetsugu, he made the mistake of telling us ahead of time. So Eevee and I already had a plan to give him payback for waking us up so rudely.

"Finally, you decided to show up. Are you ready for training now?"

"Yes Lady Aya!" Said Kanetsugu.

I sighed. How in the name of Arceus could this guy be so enthusiastic this early in the morning? He was worse than Karu, who would be up every morning just about with our dad practicing their sword skills. However Eevee and I were pretty confident based on the location so both of us nodded to Aya's question.

Aya smiled. "Then you two may begin. Battle only using your Pokémon today though, You'll be receiving weapons training from Kenshin next week, but for now you will be practicing your strategies for working with your Pokémon."

As Kanetsugu and I stood on opposite sides of the snowfield the battle begun, and Eevee and I were ready for anything. "Kadabra, get in range and hit Eevee with a Zen Headbutt Attack!"

I smiled, Eevee and I had planned this whole thing out on the way here. "Eevee! You know what to do!" Eevee ran over to a snow covered tree and stood under it then curled up into a little ball as if it was scared and hiding. Kanetsugu looked surprised at our plan but commanded Kadabra to keep up its attack. Eevee still just stayed where she was until Kadabra stopped to launch its attack. That was the moment I shouted, "NOW!" Eevee got up from her spot and quickly leapt up from her spot and used a powerful Take Down Attack on the tree. Snow fell down in a huge amount and buried Kadabra to the point where he couldn't get up. Aya declared a victory for me and Eevee, as Kanetsugu just stared in shock.

"How did you know? How did you know exactly what would work in this? And how on earth can that count as a victory?" Kanetsugu asked as he ran to dig his partner out of the mountain of snow.

"It's quite simple when you know your own strengths and weaknesses, as well as watch your opponent's movements, attack patterns, and strategies. And you don't have to knock out an opponent's Pokémon to win, you just have to render them unable to fight. So I'm sorry but this counts as a victory Nat!"

Kanetsugu didn't even answer for several minutes, as he continued to dig his Kadabra out of the snow. It was pretty deep so Eevee and I walked over to help. Afterwards I handed Kanetsugu an Oran Berry for his Pokémon. "Here you go Nat! It'll help with Kadabra's healing! After all he did still take a little damage from the snowfall."

The berry was accepted and given to Kadabra rather silently, but then Kanetsugu looked at me seriously and said, "Don't call me 'Nat.'" Then he got up and walked away as his partner loyally followed. After taking a few steps away Kanetsugu turned back and smiled. "See you at dinner Nya!"

As he turned and walked away I smiled, knowing that I had just gained a new friend and rival.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Finally wrote this chapter! Part of it seems a little out of place, but I think it's okay.

I got the idea for the sword practice scene from the first book in the Young Samurai book series, and the rest was from a short story that I didn't put in the original version of this story.

Next chapter there be an actual battle, and as a note I am including characters from Samurai Warriors who were not put in Conquest.

Anyway Enjoy!

* * *

The next day I met Kanetsugu in the training hall used for weapons practice, bright and early same as the day before. Eevee followed behind me, but she was only here to observe today. I walked over to Kanetsugu who was holding two wooden bokken swords. He held out one to me with both hands, and I bowed as I accepted it. Only a few moments later, Kenshin walked in with his partner, Gallade, at his side. "Good morning, Lord Kenshin!" The two of us said at the exact same time.

Kenshin gave us an acknowledging nod. "A good morning to the two of you as well," Then Kenshin looked in my direction. "Nya, is this your first time with sword practice?"

"Yes it is actually." I figured I was going to regret that answer just a little bit when I saw the slightly sympathetic smile from Gallade, and the totally amused look from Kanetsugu. Especially that look from Kanetsugu, it was the closest to an evil grin the guy could get!

"So, are you giving her the same first lesson you gave me?" He asked.

Kenshin nodded. "Of course, but you are going through with it as well. It is a great thing to keep in mind during battle." That got me both curious and eager to start the lesson. I wondered what great sword technique that the one known as one of the greatest swordsman in Ransei was going to teach. "I want you to both hold your bokken in front of you with your arms held straight, until I say that you may stop." Eevee, who was climbing on Gallade as if he were a tree, automatically stopped, fell back down to the ground and stared up at me with a puzzled look. I felt the same way but didn't show it at all, and on the count of three Kanetsugu and I began the training exercise.

At first it wasn't so hard, but after a while it became more difficult to hold up the wooden sword. A few moments into the challenge, I had dropped my arms before Kenshin actually called time. Kanetsugu on the other hand had definitely done this at least a few times. He managed to make it to the moment when Kenshin did call time, which was actually pretty impressive. The one thing I was confused about was what exactly the point of that was, so I asked.

"It's simply a test of willpower, strength, and control." Kenshin explained. "If you can be defeated by your own sword in practice, who's to say you won't be defeated by your enemy's weapon in battle?"

After that we practiced various sword forms, then we all took a quick break for lunch. After that we practiced sword forms some more. Then Kenshin allowed us some time to practice our individual arts. I didn't really have an individual art I was trying to perfect yet, so Eevee and I just kind of watched Kanetsugu practice his magic attacks with his paper charms. After being hit by a stray magic attack, Eevee and I just decided to retreat to our room.

* * *

As we returned to our room Eevee and I sat on a little spot by the window where I often liked to read. I pulled a book of Ransei's Mythology, and flipped through the pages unfocused as my partner slept next to me. I ended up just staring out the window and thinking about things. Recent events, my arrival in Illusio, leaving Nixtorm, our journey, and eventually my mind wandered to when I first met Eevee…

* * *

_I five years old when we first met, Karu and I were playing in the snow back at home and ended up in the middle of an all-out snowball war. We had built two snow castles and pretended we were warlords defending our precious kingdoms from attack. I was at a moderate disadvantage since Karu was five years older than me and already had his partner Pokémon, a Piplup. While I was struggling to keep up with the rapid fire from Karu's side, he had Piplup build more snowballs so his rapid-fire attack wouldn't cease for more than at least two seconds at a time. That was when a heard a loud shriek come from behind me a Karu missed with his most recent snowball. I ducked down behind my castle to see what it was and saw a little brown and white Pokémon lying in the snow. I realized it was an Eevee, a rare Pokémon that I had only seen in books. "Karu! Cease Fire!" I shouted as I ran over to the little Pokémon. It looked scared, but not hurt. I knelt down next to the little Pokémon just to be sure though. "I'm sorry, did I hurt you?"_

_The Eevee slowly got up and shook it's head. I sighed in relief, as Eevee smiled as if to say, "No harm done!" Then a faint golden light formed around us. As it faded a few minutes later I felt a strange connection between the two of us. Karu ran over with a big goofy grin on his face. "Nya! You linked with it!"_

_"I linked with it?" I asked a little mystified by the concept, The Eevee gently pressed it's head into the palm of my hand. I smiled and gave it a pat on the head. Karu was still ranting about the link but I wasn't listening. I was just happy to have found my partner and friend…_

* * *

My focus snapped back to where I was. Eevee was still asleep next to me. I quietly stood up trying my best not to wake up the little Pokémon, and left the room. At this moment I needed to take a walk to clear my head.

* * *

I left the castle and walked for a while until I came to a small crystal clear pond. I sat on one of the crystals and watched as a little group of Goldeen swan peacefully. They seemed unaffected by these crazy times unlike so many of the people and Pokémon of Ransei. Suddenly everything that had happened in the last three weeks hit me. How fast peace could go away and change to conflict was frightening. How fast all those times I spent just having fun in snowball battles cold quickly turn to being caught in the middle of the real thing. I suddenly realized in my mind what would inevititbly would happen one day. I bowed my head and allowed a single tear to fall.

"Nya are you alright?" I looked up to see Aya and Kanetsugu standing in front of me with their Pokémon and Eevee at their sides. Both Aya and Kanetsugu looked concerned and Eevee ran over, jumped up, and sat on my lap string up at me with her big brown eyes.

"I'm fine." I couldn't fool them though.

"Nya, we've only known you for about two weeks, but even then both Lady Aya and I know that you'd never look that sad over nothing." Said Kanetsugu. "So what's wrong?"

Eevee continued to give me that look. Her eyes just said, "You should tell them." She placed her paw on my hand, and I nodded to say, "I understand." Then I sighed and told them everything. My full name, my old kingdom, the day I met Eevee, the day I left Nixtorm, and my journey here. At the end of my long story both of them said nothing, then Eevee smiled and shouted to the other Pokémon, "GROUP HUG!" I could only say, "Oh dear…" before we were trapped. But I just smiled for some reason it reminded me of home.

After that Eevee jumped up on my shoulder, and I gave her a pat on the head to say thank you. She nudged me with her head to say thank you. Then our conversation went back to normal. The three of us sat with our Pokémon and talked for until diner time. As we walked back to the castle I smiled at a realization. "You know, you three are kind of like a second family."

The two of them both stopped and turned back to look at me. "We are?" asked Kanetsugu.

"Yeah, Aya honestly kind of reminds me of my mom, a kind person although you want to stay on their good side. Kenshin like my dad is a rather serious and honorable warrior, who's really very kind and gentle at heart. And you Nat, are like my annoying brother!"

Kanetsugu smiled. "That's very kind of you to say to us Nya!" then his eyes widened. "Wait… What do you mean annoying older brother!?

"Two words Nat… Honor. And Rants."

He just gave me an annoyed look. "I'll get you back for that in training practice tomorrow…"

"Oh I don't doubt it! for now though we should probably hurry back to the castle, race you there!"


	5. Chapter 5

Hey, finally got around to updating this thing! A few things you should know about this chapter and probably the rest of this story.

One: Like I think I mentioned earlier warriors will use weapons in this story but they won't attack Pokémon with them

Two: I'm using the names of their fourth weapons from Samurai Warriors Chronicles, but they won't be as crazy powerfull as the fourth weapons and be more like their normal weapons. (Except for Nya. her weapons are named after her Speed and Power weapons.)

Three: due to the fact that I am getting their weapons some of them may seem a little unrealistic.

Four: I am adding in the four characters from Samurai Warriors who weren't in Conquest, but they will not evolve to rank two.

And Five: You do not have to have played Samurai Warriors to understand this story! I'm primarily sticking to the Conquest storyline!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or Samurai Warriors. (Forgot to put this at the beginning!)

* * *

Eevee and I quickly rushed down the hallways of Illusio Castle alongside Kanetsugu and Kadabra. Kenshin had recently received a message that Shingen's army from Terrera was coming to attack the kingdom. Eevee and I had been preparing for battle when we received a message to meet with Kenshin before the battle. Apparently Kanetsugu had received a similar message and we had met up with each other on the way. We arrived at the specified location, (Also known as the training hall), and found Kenshin siting with two weapons cases in front of him.

"You called for us, Lord Kenshin?" I said as we both bowed.

"Yes, Aya and I thought that you two should be using real weapons instead of your wooden training ones in the middle of battle. So we had these made a few weeks ago." We stood still unsure of what to do at that point. After a few brief moments of awkward silence Kenshin finally said something. "You can come pick them up you know."

I open the case I had just picked up and found twin Wakizashi short swords in their scabbards. As I pulled them out I noticed that one had a faint dark-bluish tint to the metal and the other had a faint reddish tint. I decided to call them Dusk's Vow and Dawn's Promise.

Kanetsugu had a sword as well however his was a long sword, not a short sword, and he has a set of magic paper charms to use alongside it. He loudly declared that he would call it Evil's Bane. I just rolled my eyes at that one, and Eevee lightly tapped her head against the nearby wall. I quickly thanked Kenshin, bowed, and then quietly ran off to finish preparing for the battle.

* * *

A few hours later the attack began. I figured since we were on our own battlefield, but then Aya told me that this has happened so many times that Kenshin and Shingen know each other's kingdoms as well as their own. Illusio's battlefield was complicated enough so that it still made things difficult. Basically there are four large floating crystal islands with banners on them, and your job is to capture all the banners before the enemy does. But there is also a vast space between all of the islands with teleportation portals and sliding cubes that use can use to get to various locations. The difficult part is that the portals frequently change throughout the battle, so you really have to get your timing right.

The two armies started on opposite sides of the field each on one of the banner islands. Then as soon as both of us were ready the insanely crazy game of capture the flag began.

First Kenshin claimed the banner on our field and a guy with a zanbato sword and a Mightyena, (Who Aya told me was Shima Sakon), claimed the banner on Shingen's side. Then Aya began making her way over to the banner Sakon was protecting and Kanetsugu made a mad dash for the banner a warrior on Shingen's side named Sanada Yukimura was heading for. Shingen was heading for the banner Kenshin was guarding, (of course!), and that left one more unclaimed banner on the field. I decided to run for that one and so did the last warrior on their side Kunoichi, who made it there first.

Kunoichi used two large knives in battle, and her partner Pokémon was a Sneasel. Sneasel stood on the banner and Eevee went after it as I fought Kunoichi. It wasn't easy, since she was more experienced and faster than I was. I honestly blocked attacks more than making attempts at my own. But Eevee must have managed to beat Sneasel since the banner changed to our color. Apparently Aya and Kanetsugu managed to claim their banners but no victory had happened on either side because Shingen's Rhyperior had managed to knock Gallade off its place on the banner, and the two of them were having a battle over the final one. Gallade seemed to actually be having a bit of fun with this because I could see a slight smile on his face.

Finally after what seemed like forever, Aya stepped in with Froslass and defeated Rhyperior, leaving Gallade to take the final banner, and giving a victory to us.

* * *

Later Aya told me that they weren't really actually trying to take Illusio, although if they won they would have, Shingen and Kenshin just like having random battles with each other like that. The same went for Kanetsugu and Yukimura, despite being from opposite kingdoms they were actually friends and rivals. The four of us all ate lunch outside that day and afterwards Aya looked up at the sky. "It's only about noon so looks like we can actually have a training session today."

Kanetsugu and I both groaned but knew it was pointless to argue. I gently woke up Eevee, who muttered something about Aya being crazy. "Just deal with it Eevee, it's a teamwork session today so you only have to do half the work. You can take a nap after, I promise I won't bug you then."

"You better not." She said quickly leaping up on my shoulder as we both ran off.


	6. Chapter 6

Sorry if this whole first part of the story feels a little rushed, mainly this is just to establish a background story for the main character since in-game they don't actually have one.

The haiku in this chapter I wrote myself, though it kind of sounds like something I've heard somewhere else.

I think that's about it so enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Finally there came one day when there were no training sessions, and we could take a break in a small moment of peace. Eevee and I had chosen to hide out by the pond, beneath a blooming cherry tree. It had already been four months since I left Nixtorm, and it felt like no time had passed at all. Well… for the most part! Right now though I felt as if time moving fast or slow didn't matter. The calm atmosphere of the area helped me think, and that was something that I needed to do right now.

A blank scroll sat in front of me, practically demanding to be written on. I had a brush and a small ceramic container of ink sitting next to it, but all that I needed was an idea. I ended up staring off into space for a while, just looking up at the pink blossoms of the tree until my mind wandered elsewhere. Just a few moments later, a loud splash sent me out of my trance-like state. Looking up I saw a soaking wet Eevee pulling herself out of the pond. The once peaceful surface was now full of ripples. Suddenly an idea came to my mind as I quickly dipped my brush into the ink. I wrote:

Peace is like a pond  
Simply disturb the surface  
And ripples appear

I smiled at Eevee. "Thanks for the haiku, and the writer's block cure!" she gave me a look that just said, "Not funny Nya… Not funny at all…" Which did not keep me from laughing. "Come on Eevee, you know I'm only joking! Well… Half-joking."

Eevee decided it was pointless to argue and just gave up and curled up next to me. I smiled and gently scratched my partner behind the ears. _Why can't the whole region just be like this? _I thought. _No conflict, no war over the Legendary Pokémon, just able to live in peace, and joke with friends. _I sighed knowing this was just about impossible. The land's name meant "turbulent times." How could be peace exist in a land with like that? _Then again… There are little moments like this. Moments of peace where it feels like war is far away, no matter how close it may be._

I stared at the haiku I wrote on the scroll. If peace is like a pond, then all you have to do to maintain it is to keep the little problems of the land from rippling across its surface. A task easier said than done, but hopefully not impossible. Looking up at the clear blue sky, I began thinking again. _If I were to find the Legendary Pokémon, I wouldn't use its power to rule the land, or to prove myself, or for whatever reasons everyone wants to find it. I would ask it to help me end the war for good. That seems like the right reason to find it._

Eevee and I had been sitting there all day, and the sun was setting. I headed back to my room in Illusio castle, filled with a new resolve that was sure to guide me in the right direction.

I had told Eevee of what I had thought about, and she agreed to help me on the path to a peaceful Ransei. Both of us letting our newfound goal be our guide we practiced even harder in all our training sessions, both with the sword and our in-battle teamwork. Every night after dinner was spent planning how to accomplish our dream before going to bed. Before we knew it, a few weeks later, a full-fledged plan had come through. We were just about to tell Kenshin, Aya, and Kanetsugu the next morning, when a messenger ran into the room we were all gathered in.

The messenger looked like he had been running as if his life depended on it, and could barely say the message. After Kenshin asked him to slow down and speak clearly, he took a deep breath and managed to choke it out.

"LORD KENSHIN, NOBUNAGA HAS LAUNCHED AN ATTACK ON ILLUSO!"

_Well this will not end well…_


	7. Chapter 7

I think this may be my best chapter so far in this story, and I really think I did a good job with the battle in this one. (Beyond hard to write!) Anyway, this chapter ends part one of the story, and moves on to part two which is more like the main story.

* * *

At this point I wouldn't have been surprised at all if I saw Kotaro sitting in the shadows with a bucket of popcorn, because the castle was in total chaos. By the time the messenger arrived Nobunaga was practically on our doorstep. Everyone quickly ran around the castle gathering their weapons and items to prepare for the battle. Kenshin called on two other warriors, Kagekatsu and Sen, to help out with this one. Just from that I knew this was going to be a lot worse than when we fought Shingen. I looked over at Eevee who didn't seem scared or nervous or scared at all. "Alright buddy, you ready?" Eevee just nodded. "Good, if I do something stupid please stop me." She nodded again, then jumped down from the place she was sitting, and followed me off to the battlefield.

* * *

On our side we had Eevee and I, Kenshin and Gallade, Aya and Froslass, Kanetsugu and Kadabra, Sen and Chimecho, and Kagekatsu with his Kirlia. On Nobunaga's side there was himself with his Zekrom, Ranmaru and Riolu, No and Mismagius, Mitsuhide and Lapras, Katsuie and Ursaring, and then surprisingly Karu and Prinplup were there as well. The plan was simple enough. Aya would go after Zekrom since she has an Ice-type partner, and Kenshin would go after Lapras due to having a Fighting-type. Kanetsugu had offered go against Karu so I wouldn't have to, and I agreed to that completely. I offered to go after Mismagius to test out Eevee's new attack. That left Sen, who was going against Ranmaru, and Kagekatsu, who was going against Katsuie. On top of all this we still had to focus on capturing the banners as well. Eevee looked up at me waiting for the signal to go, and as I nodded we quickly made our way to the place where we were supposed to go.

No just smirked when she saw I was using Eevee. "You're going to fight a Ghost Pokémon with one who can't even land a hit. Do you want to die?"

"That's what you think! Eevee show them what you can do!" Eevee quickly formed a ball of shadow energy and launched it at Mismagius causing a direct hit, as I ran forward to attack No. My attack was blocked by her claws but Eevee's attack had done some serious damage to her Pokémon. No swept at me with the claws but I managed a successful block. Eevee was doing great since Mismagius couldn't hit her with any of its attacks and all the ones that would worked she dodged expertly. Finally Eevee launched a Shadow Ball that finished off Mismagius, leaving No to retreat.

I looked around the battlefield to see if anyone needed any help, and a far as I could tell no one did. Sen and Aya were holding their on pretty well against Nobunaga and Ranmaru, and Kenshin and Kagekatsu seemed to be doing fine against Katsuie and Mitsuhide, who was just sent retreating. Kanetsugu seemed to be alright against Karu, but against Prinplup, Kadabra wasn't doing so great. _So much for not having to fight against my brother… _"Come on Eevee! Let's give them a hand!"

Lucky for us there was a teleport portal nearby that led to that spot so we ran right through it. When Eevee and I made it over Karu looked over shocked to see me. "Koorishimo Siniya, is that you!?"

I rolled my eyes. "Full name really necessary Karu? And yes it's me."

"You know, both mom and dad were worried beyond belief when I told them you had left and I had no idea where to."

"Karu, this really isn't the time." I pointed over at Prinplup, Kadabra, and Eevee who was already attacking without hesitation. "We're in the middle of a battle you know!"

After that Karu had fend off against both my attacks and Kanetsugu's. Just because he was my brother that did not mean that I was going to go easy on him. He had to block my rapid sword strikes, along with Kanetsugu's just slightly slower ones, and on top of that the occasional magic blast. Out of the corner of my eye I saw that Eevee was showing no mercy what-so-ever to Prinplup as she used repeated Quick Attacks and close-ranged Shadow Balls. Combined with Kadabra's psychic attacks Prinplup wasn't going to last much longer. After what felt like forever I heard a shout from Eevee and Eevee and Kadabra. At first I had thought that the tides had turned in Prinplup's favor, so I stopped striking at Karu, and looked over only to see Eevee doing this ridiculous victory dance while Kadabra just smiled.

Knowing that as long as Prinplup was defeated I could expect no attacks from Karu, I walked over to my partner and gave her a pat on the head. "Good job you goof!" She smiled up at me and leaped up on to my shoulder, as we looked around the battlefield once again. Kagekatsu was close to finishing off Katsuie and his Ursaring. And the same went for Kenshin in his battle against Mitsuhide. Just as I thought everything was going alright, I heard a shout from Aya's direction and saw that she had stumbled backwards and now had a sword pressed against her throat. Froslass couldn't give her hand because she was preoccupied with Zekrom, and Sen was facing the same problem fending off against Ranmaru and his Riolu. I looked next to me and saw that Kanetsugu wasn't there. Being the honorable idiot he can be sometimes he had ran off to rescue Aya.

"EEVEE!" I shouted and she gave me an offended look. "What!? You only told me to stop you from doing stupid things!" I shook my head. "Never mind, let's just go give our crazy friend a hand…"

We stepped through the nearest portal and ended up on a small place not too far from the main island that Aya had been fighting on, and quickly stepped onto one of the moving platforms that would take us there. Kanetsugu had sent Kadabra to give Froslass a hand, but it was only him against Nobunaga since Aya was in the process of retrieving the staff that had been knocked from her hands. While Kanetsugu had managed to distract Nobunaga from nearly killing Aya, he did not take into account their difference in skill levels. Even when I ran over to help out we still were getting defeated rather quickly. The only thing that saved us was the ball of bluish energy that Aya shot from her staff which knocked Nobunaga away from the two of us.

At this point the others had walked over from defeating their opponents. Nobunaga seeing he was at a disadvantage even with a Legendary Pokémon decided to call a retreat. That was when I did something stupid.

"Nobunaga! You're a fool if you think the Pokémon that created this land would accept you as a partner! I'm sure that it I looking down on this land and thinking that we are all fools for all this fighting just to meet it and gain the ability to crush all our enemies, or rule the land, or whatever other reasons they want to find it! Well there are some people in this region who could care less about ruling or defeating others, and those people would like to have a land of peace. I know for a fact that it's not just me in this, and that's why I vow to one day defeat you, and make that wish for peace come true!"

Nobunaga stared in silence for a few moments and then laughed. "Is that so? Well then Koorishimo Siniya, I look forward to the day I face you." And with the finishing of that sentence he flew off on Zekrom.

I turned back and saw everyone, (Kenshin included), staring at me in shock. That's when it hit me what I had done. "EEVEE! I ASKED YOU STOP ME FROM DOING SOMETHING STUPID IF I WAS ABOUT TO!" Eevee just glanced up at me as if nothing had happened. "Oh, that was something stupid? I thought you were doing great!" I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and counted to ten. People will tell you that that's supposed to calm you down, but I don't think that those people have ever issued a challenge to Nobunaga without a moment's thought or hesitation. So I ended up counting to sixty instead which helped just a little, but enough to keep my calm enough to talk to Aya, Kenshin, and Kanetsugu.

I explained that I had decided to accept the position of being Aurora's warlord, and take up my own quest to find the Legendary Pokémon. My quest was not like the others though. I just wanted the answer to a question that gone through my head when I wrote that haiku. A strange goal to capture all seventeen kingdoms for, but a goal nonetheless and one that I intended to see through to the very end, regardless of what they said.

Luckily for me all three of them respected my decision. It especially met Kanetsugu's approval due to the honorable goal of fighting for peace. I rolled my eyes, but then gave him a hug, and smiled. "Nat, never change." This time surprisingly he didn't object to his nickname, which made me smile even more. _He's either just accepted that I'll never stop calling him that, or he just doesn't mind it so much anymore._

As I took a step over to say my goodbyes to Kenshin and Aya, I heard a small clink at my feet. I bent down and saw a small icy looking crystal lying at my feet. There was a large loop of ribbon forming it into a necklace, and a note was also attached.

_For my dear little sister,  
A never-melting memento from home  
to help your dream come true!  
From Karu  
(P.S. Let Eevee wear it, trust me!)_

I gently closed my eyes and smiled as a held the necklace close to my heart for a moment. Then I placed it around Eevee's neck. "A gift from Karu." I told her quietly and she nodded. Then I stood back up and walked over to Aya and Kenshin, and hugged them both. "Aya look after Nat, and don't go easy on him in training sessions for me okay?" I heard horrified sounds in the background but chose to ignore them. "Kenshin, Don't lose to both Shingen and Nobunaga. I'll miss all three of you but I promise I'll send you letters!" and with that I ran back into the castle, grabbed my pre-packed bag, and left Illusio towards my new home in Aurora…


	8. Chapter 8

This is when things start to become a little more like the main story. Also if you've played Samurai Warriors you will total understand the Pokémon choice for Nagamasa! (I kind of got the idea from a piece of conquest fan-art I found on Google Images, same with Katsuie's and Sakon's, but Toshiie's is different from the one I saw in that picture!)

Anyway, now that I have finished my opening ramblings enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Three years later…

I stood in front of the castle gates, and just stared for a while, taking it all in. I was now warlord of my own kingdom. Eevee was now a Glaceon thanks to the ice shard from Karu, and had started calling her Glacier. I felt a nudge against my leg and looked down. Glacier was giving me a, "Quit stalling and get it over with look!" I took a deep breath and walked through the gates and towards the castle entrance.

As I walked over to the main entrance to the castle I saw two people, a boy and a girl about my age, standing there. The girl had a Jigglypuff sitting on her shoulder, while the boy had an Escavalier. They were both talking to each other, and I did not feel like intruding on their conversation, but of course Glacier was urging to go over, so I had no choice. "Hello." I said holding up one hand, as they turned to look in my direction. Just as the two were about to say something a boy and two others walked over. One of them had a very fluffy looking red and white headdress and seemed like the type who could care less about most things, one of the others had spiky white hair and seemed like the peace-keeper type, and the third had black hair and I could tell that he was the kind of person who could quickly get on one's nerves.

"So, this is Aurora's new warlord?" Said the one with the fluffy headdress.

"Is that a Glaceon!?" Shouted the annoying one.

"That's a Pokémon you don't usually see around here." Finished the one with the white hair.

Glacier got a proud look at the last comment, and I just bent down and gave a pat on the head. Then I looked back at the three boys. "Yes I am Aurora's new warlord. The name's Nya. And yes this is a Glaceon, but don't compliment her too much. It'll all go to her head." Glacier gave me a look that just pretty much said, "what on Earth are you talking about!?" I chose to ignore it. "Anyway I introduced myself so what are your names?"

"I'm Ishida Mitsunari." Said the boy with the headdress. "The other one here is Kato Kiyomasa, and the loud mouthed fool is Fukushima Masanori."

"Well then, nice to meet the three of you!" Just as I was about to ask the other two what their names were, a frantic messenger ran over. I could hear lots of noise in the distance, and knew what that most likely meant. _I just became leader and this is already happening!? Talk about just plain out ridiculous…_

"Lady Nya! Warriors of Ignis are attacking Aurora!" The messenger shouted. I sighed a little annoyed since I just got here, but Glacier was ready to go. Knowing I had to defend my new kingdom I walked along side my partner to the battlefield.

* * *

There were three warriors on the field as I walked over. Two of them were the typical kind of warriors I had seen all over Ransei on my journey towards Aurora. These two used a Drumaka and a Timburr. This was not the case with the other however. The third warrior had a sleepy looking expression on his face, and he had a floppy yellow and white hat on his head. His partner Pokémon, a Pikachu, sat on top of the hat.

"Hello!" The warrior with the Pikachu said. "I'm Takenaka Hanbei, and this is Koroku and Nagayasu. I'm assuming that you're Nya, Aurora's new warlord?" No reply from me, I was still a little confused as to why he would give an introduction before the battle. "I'll take your silence as a yes. Anyway we're here to challenge you for control of Aurora, because Hideyoshi told either me or Kanbei to lead the attack, and I apparently was the one who had to go. Anyway, where's your army? I'd like to wrap this up quickly so I can go back and take a nap."

Seeing as I just became warlord like ten seconds ago, I had hardly had to establish an army. So at this point it looked like it was going to be just me and Glacier. Not that she had any problem with it, but it would be easier with some help. "This is my army." I replied with as much confidence as I could muster.

The warrior with the Timburr, whose name was Koroku, just laughed. "There's only one of you? This'll be easy!"

Nagayasu, the warrior with Darumaka, spoke up next. "Aurora's as good as ours!"

I cringed just a little. _Way to lower one's confidence…_ Oh well, I couldn't let their words get the better of me. Right now I had to stand my ground and fight. Even though I had only just gotten this kingdom I was ready to defend it to the very end. Which I loudly announced to my enemies as the battle began. Just before we charged though I heard a voice come from behind. "Please wait!"

I turned and saw that the voice had come from the boy I had seen earlier with the Escavalier. Both he and the girl with the Jigglypuff were running over. "Let us fight with you!" Said the girl. Outside I keep a look of confidence, but internally, I gave a sigh of relief. "I am grateful for your help, thank you."

As the battle began, it was agreed that no weapons would be used this time. Only our Pokémon. We agreed in our group that Jigglypuff would go after Darumaka, Escavalier would go after Timburr, and Glacier would take on Pikachu. Honestly I was not worried about defeat at all, I was actually more nervous for Hanbei's poor Pikachu. Glacier as an Eevee had become pretty well-known for showing no mercy in battle, and I could swear it had become worse when she became a Glaceon. Nevertheless it was often a useful trait against our stronger opponents, but against our weaker opponents it was a tad bit excessive. Today though I had a feeling it was going to be useful, and I was completely right. Hanbei seemed to be an expert strategist and was giving even Glacier a difficult time against Pikachu. That is until Glacier lost all forms of patience, (Which now that I think about it are non-existent with her.), and fired off a powerful Blizzard Attack, knocking Pikachu out. I looked over to where my allies were standing and saw that they had defeated their opponents as well.

"What's that you said about this being easy? Cause I think we just proved you wrong!" I said in a slightly mocking tone. Glacier gave a single happy nod in agreement.

"Y-you're way stronger than they said you'd be!" Koroku said with a slightly horrified tone.

"What are we going to do now!? Hideyoshi's going to chew us out big-time when we get back to Ignis!" Nagayasu sounded just a little terrified as he spoke.

Hanbei just looked over at our group with a bit of an, "aw great," look, and then looked back over at his two allies. "Hideyoshi will be the least of my problems. I've got to deal with Kanbei asking how I ended up losing to a complete beginner! Oh well, let's retreat while we still can." And with that the three of them headed back to Ignis in defeat, leaving Glacier and I to somewhat quietly enjoy our victory.

* * *

After the battle I finally learned the names of the two who had helped me. The guy with the Escavalier was Azai Nagamasa, and the girl with the Jigglypuff was Oichi. They also both requested to join our army, which I happily agreed to. Glacier didn't seemed pleased by this, but in time those two would earn her trust without a doubt.

"Thank you, we won't let you down!" Nagamasa declared in response to my agreement.

"Would you like us to give you a tour of the kingdom, Lady Nya?" Asked Oichi.

"That would be lovely, thank you." _Drat… I think they're already rubbing off on me!_


	9. Chapter 9

I actually have no ramblings this time... It's amazing!

So, just enjoy the chapter!

* * *

The castle town of Aurora was actually a pretty lively place. There were a lot of farmers and blacksmiths in the kingdom, and they all came to the main square market to sell their goods. There were also a bunch of other interesting shops most of them selling various items and treasures, and also a stall for a traveling salesperson who was not here at the moment.

After a wandering and doing a little shopping, we all decided to take a break and rest under the shade of a tree. I had bought some ponigiri for Pokémon to share as a snack, while the rest of us shared a large container of pecha berries, and discussed a few things about the kingdom. After a while one of the local farmers ran over, looking rather frantic. "Y-you're Lady Nya, right? The new warlord of our kingdom?"

"Yes I am, is there something wrong?" I asked a little cautiously.

"Yes, there is! A flock of Starly have been going after my crops for days on end! At the rate they're going at, we'll hardly have enough to sell and to feed ourselves when the harvest time comes! I know this task may seem a little menial for the leader of a kingdom, but could you chase them away somehow? We've tried just about everything!"

I gave a mental sigh of relief. Sure this was a bad situation, but I thought that it was going to be a whole lot worse. I guess that's probably due to being in kingdoms that were often under attack growing up. Either way, as warlord of Aurora it's not just my job to defend the kingdom from harm, but also help its people. I agreed to help him out, and the three of us headed out towards the farm.

* * *

"I've got this!" Glacier shouted, as soon as we had arrived. She charged forward, ready to knock them all out. I on the other hand, had a different and less violent plan. There had to be a reason why they wouldn't leave and I was going to find out.

"Hold your fire Glacier! I want to see what they do first." Glacier stopped her attacked and stepped back to stand next to me. From what I saw, the Starly were definitely eating the crops, but there was also something else going on. I counted at least four of them guarding a specific spot of a nearby tree, while the others were eating and also bringing food to the guarded spot. That's when I decided it would be a good idea to investigate.

"All right, I'm going to climb that tree over there. Oichi, if anything happens have Jigglypuff tell them that I mean no harm. Glacier, no matter what no attacks, okay? There's some reason for this and I have to figure it out."

Glacier didn't seem too terribly thrilled with the idea of me climbed into a tree, that was guarded by a flock of honestly pretty tough looking Starly, without backup but she reluctantly agreed. I reminded her that I had done this countless amounts of times in Illusio, but that didn't really seem to help much. Either way I was going investigate, so I walked over to the tree, and started climbing.

The  
Starly actually didn't seem to care at first, and they only glanced at me. But when I got to about the middle I was hit by repeated peck attacks. I heard Jigglypuff shout something, and backed off a little, until I was right next to the guarded spot. That was when they started attacking at full force, all eight of them. Jigglypuff's reassurance failed at this point, and Glacier was ready to defend me by freezing them all out of the sky. I managed to glance into the gap in the leaves and told her to stop. She seemed shocked that I was enduring the attacks for whatever was back there, and she still stood in a defensive stance, ready to attack if it got worse. "It's all right Glacier, I'll be fine." She relaxed a little upon hearing that but I knew she wouldn't be completely calm. It still would give me just enough time for what I needed to do.

Inside the bunches of leaves, was a Starly with a broken wing. It looked lost and afraid. I couldn't just leave the poor little guy there. Even with the help of his friends, he wouldn't make it his entire life like that. I slowly reached out a hand, and the little guy backed away slightly. His eyes were closed out of fear. "It's alright little one." I said gently. "I won't hurt you." He looked back at me still a little scared. His eyes met mine for a few moments, making a decision. He then pressed his head into my hand, and a faint golden light appeared around both of us. After it faded, Starly let out a little chirp, and the others backed off on their attacks.

He looked up at me, then at his wing, and then back at me. I nodded and held his wing out perfectly straight, and placed a stick to use as a splint in line with the wing. Then I took the ribbons used to keep my hair tied back out, and used them to hold the stick in place. After I was sure it was secure, I picked up the little bird Pokémon and carried him down the tree. I quickly made my way back to the others and handed Starly to Oichi.

"Lady Nya, are you alright?" Oichi looked pretty concerned as she asked.

I smiled. "Yep! I'm perfectly… Nope." Then everything went black.


	10. Chapter 10

Alright if anyone begins to wonder about pairings in this story this is what I have to say. This story will have no pairings yet, however this is a conquest trilogy. The next story will have a little more romance in it, but I prefer writing action or friendship and family themed stories over romantic ones. Originally this story was going to have no pairing at all but then I started to like Nya with one character and a couple other pairings after playing Samurai Warriors, so they will end up being in the story. However the romance in this story is only a small part.

Anyway, now that I've gotten that cleared up time for the little before chapter notes!

Erm... I've actually got nothing to say this aside from enjoy the chapter!

* * *

I woke up what could've only been a few hours after the Starly incident, judging by the sunset outside the window. I started to sit up, but after wincing in pain from the earlier attack, I just decided to lay back down. I ended up becoming lost in thought, and a few moments later I was smacked in the face by a light blue paw.

"WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU THINKING NYA!? THAT WAS THE CRAZIEST MOST STUPID THING… AND I CAN SEE BY THE LOOK ON YOUR FACE YOU'RE NOT GOING TO LISTEN TO ME ON THIS ONE, SO WHAT DO YOU THINK KENSHIN, AYA, AND KANETSUGU WOULD SAY!?"

I blinked twice in shock. Honestly I had never seen Glacier like that before. And we have done a lot more crazy stuff than that, so I couldn't really see why she was freaking out. Nonetheless, I recovered from my initial shock and responded. "Kenshin would believe that I did the right thing. Aya would say that it was an act of love and compassion for the little bird Pokémon. And Nat would say it was the honorable thing to do."

Glacier simply responded that she hated to admit that I was a right. Then things went silent between us, until a thought crossed my mind. "Hold on. That was lecture-worthy stupid, but challenging Oda Nobunaga isn't?"

Glacier just smiled, "No that wasn't stupid at all. It was brilliant!" Sadly she genuinely thought that it was. Makes me wonder if she had had any issues with Nobunaga in the past, but I decided that was a question for another time. Instead I shook my head and told her that I questioned her logic, which, frighteningly enough seemed to please her even more. Then I remembered the whole reason I was having this conversation in the first place.

"Hey Glacier, How's that little Starly doing?"

"Oh, Hoshi's doing just fine!" Glacier seemed unusually cheerful at the mention of the little bird. "Oichi says he should recover just fine!"

_That's good. _I thought as I gave a small sigh of relief. _Wait a minute… Hoshi? _"Glacier did you give him a name?"

"of course!" She said with that same cheery look. "I figured he's part of our group now, and if he's going to stay he'll need a name, and-" Whatever she was about say as cut off when Glacier saw the look on my face. It was half mocking, and half, "Aw, how sweet." Glacier having a soft spot for the Starly -er- Hoshi, had to be one of the weirdest, sweetest things I had seen in all the time I had been with her. She just told me to stop looking at her like that, and get some sleep for whatever we're doing tomorrow, and walked out of the room with her face red with embarrassment. That was the second first for her in just ten minutes.

* * *

The next day was spent planning what to do next. Our little group could either train some more, take a break for a while, or launch a counter attack on Ignis after they attacked us. Glacier and I were leaning heavily towards the attack on Ignis, but she just wanted to get the trip to the "fiery death-trap" over with as soon as possible. Our decision was sort of made for us when the farmer from yesterday showed up. He thanked us for the help from yesterday, and to repay us, told us about a ravine area that would be great for training our Pokémon. And so it was agreed that we were going to take a walk and do some training for today.

* * *

When I heard ravine I thought of a canyon with a river running through it, Nothing really impressive. Boy was I wrong! The ravine was an almost mountain-like area, full of lush greenery and beautiful flowers, and complete with a waterfall and small river. Honestly it really seemed more like the place to take a nice peaceful hike rather than have a battle. But the farmer had said it was a great place to train, so I decided to take his word for it.

After a nice long hike around the area a group of wild Pokémon appeared. There was a Wooper, a Bidoof, and also a Starly, but it didn't appear to be from Hoshi's flock. It didn't take long to defeat those three, but as we continued the walk more and more Pokémon began appearing each of them stronger than the others. Needless to say by the time we were doe and heading back, our Pokémon were exhausted.

After letting Glacier and the others take their well-deserved rest, Oichi, Nagamasa, and I got to planning. It was agreed that we would take the day off tomorrow and then head to challenge Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the warlord of Ignis, the next day. So yay, more waiting! (The sooner we get all the kingdoms captured the sooner I can get that ridiculous challenge over with…)


	11. Chapter 11

I don't really have much else to say aside from enjoy the chapter and thank you to all who read this!

* * *

Chapter Ten  
Preparing For What's Yet To come

After sitting in the castle gardens and reading my book on Ransei's mythology for at least the thirtieth time, I decided to take Glacier and Hoshi for a walk into the town again. We desperately needed to get some healing items for the coming battle. Judging from what I know about Ignis I figure better to be safe than sorry. Hanbei isn't Hideyoshi's only strategist after all. There's also Kuroda Kanbei, a Ghost-type specialist who's just as much a genius as Hanbei, and Hideyoshi's a lot smarter than he lets on as well. How do I know all this? Let's just say you can learn a lot just from listening to people walking by, and from being in Illusio while training. You hear a lot more in the central part of Ransei than any other location in the region.

Anyway, Hoshi's wing hadn't healed yet, but Glacier wanted him to be able to leave the room in the castle, so we found a little basket to carry him in. Glacier thought it was wrong for a Pokémon so used to the freedom of the sky to be trapped inside, and she also saw him staring through the window sadly. Honestly I have to admit being outside Hoshi does look a lot happier. I honestly like seeing those two being friends. I don't recall glacier ever getting along with another Pokémon. Well, there was Kanetsugu's Kadabra, but to be honest I'm not sure that they were actually friends, more like rivals. It's nice to see that there's a Pokémon she truly respects as a friend, and Hoshi seems to enjoy her company as well since the two have been happily talking the whole time.

After walking a while we came to one of the shops I needed to visit the most, a stall selling berries. The one I needed was an Occa Berry, which luckily the shop owner had plenty of them. I bought two to use when we really needed it then left to the next spot. After buying three Potions for each of use to use when we got to Ignis within the next few days, the three of us headed back to the castle. Between reading and the shopping trip and the extra wandering around time we'd already spend a good deal of the day and decided to head back and finish preparing for tomorrow.

* * *

At just a little after the su had risen in the sky we left for Ignis. This being my first battle as Warlord of Aurora I did not want to lose. I had to prove that I stood a chance against the other kingdoms. Glacier still wasn't pleased that this was the place of our first challenge but she was right there with me on achieving a victory. We were determined to give it our best so we could one day realize the goal we set out to accomplish.

Upon meeting Oichi and Nagamasa at the gate we learned what weapons they used in battle. Oichi used four chakrams (Think large spiked hula hoop like things) that were held two together on two smaller hoops, so she could use them without cutting herself. She called this weapons set Rising Sun. Nagamasa on the other hand used a lance called Impaler. Their Pokémon were waiting at their sides and both of them were ready to go. However, Oichi did look slightly nervous. I quickly handed out the potions I had bought the day before, and we headed out for Ignis.

* * *

Our walk to Ignis summed up would be that Glacier has a wonderfully accurate description of the place. It really is a fiery death-trap! You have active volcanos, the occasional lava spout right in the middle of the path, and the thick clouds of ash smog that make it sometimes nearly impossible to see. In fact, I'm also beginning to see why there are only a few places in Ignis that are habitable to people, and why the place is a Fire-type paradise. Both Glacier and Escavalier were going to have some difficulty here so just before we reached the gates of Ignis Castle I handed Nagamasa one of the Occa Berries. He said a simple, "Thank you," And we walked up to the gates.

"We're here to challenge Lord Hideyoshi." I confidently announced to the guards and we were led inside.

* * *

At the end of the long corridor we were led through was a large field of rocky terrain, pillars of fire, and lava, Lots and lots of lava. I heard Glacier mutter some rather unkind complaints about the battlefield, but decided not to say anything, because I agreed to over half of them. I looked over to the other side of the battlefield to see who our opponents were. Hideyoshi had apparently decided not to have Koroku and Nagayasu participate in this battle, because it was just him, Hanbei, and Kanbei. Hideyoshi had a staff held in his hands and a Monferno standing at his side. Hanbei was holding his bladed compass, (not the size of a normal compass to be sure you know), and his Pikachu was sitting on his head. And Kanbei was holding a strange orb-shaped gemstone and had a Lampent floating next to him. Our attack plan would take just a little bit of thinking with this one, and I probably didn't have quite enough time to think it out.

"Welcome to the battlefield of Ignis!" Announced Hideyoshi. "You're Lady Nya, if I'm correct?"

"Yes, you're correct on this one." I had Dawn's Promise and Dusk's Vow drawn at this point, and Glacier stood next to me with her usual confidence seemingly halved. Now I was just a tad bit worried. _Best to get this one over with fast! _"I'm ready to begin whenever you are!"

"All right then, we'll take you on! Get ready Monferno!"

I turned to Oichi and Nagamasa, then down at Glacier who nodded. "Okay! Let's show them what we're made of! Oichi, you take on Hanbei. Nagamasa, I'm thinking you should take on Hideyoshi, and I'll go after Kanbei. Let's go!"

We all charged forward towards our opponents. Glacier immediately launched a Shadow Ball at Lampent which hit directly, but didn't knock it out. I slashed forward with my swords but was swiftly blocked by an energy orb which formed in front of Kanbei. Then the energy orb slammed forward into me, and I was knocked backwards. Glacier got hit badly by a Flame Burst attack a few moments later, but she stood her ground pretty well. At least I thought she did. A simple Astonish attack from her opponent and she was knocked off her feet and struggling to get up. I managed to get up from the place where I had been knocked over to, and managed to get her out of the way before the second Flame Burst hit. She gave me a look that said "I didn't need help." I just smiled "Either way we stick together!" Glacier gave a semi-reluctant nod, and charged right back in as soon as I healed her with the potion.

Quickly she launched rapid fire Shadow Balls at Lampent, as I struck, blocked, and dodged I pattern of moves against Kanbei's energy orbs. Eventually though that became more difficult as the amount of orbs increased. I figured I was doomed by the time it hit five of them, four was hard enough. Glacier was also having difficulty, and I just barely manage to toss her the Occa Berry as another Flame Burst hit its mark. But just as the moment hit its worst Glacier came through by defeating Lampent. Kanbei stopped attacking then walked over to tend to his partner.

Glacier walked over with her confidence fully restored, and I bent down to give her a little pat on the head. "Good job buddy, now let's see if any of the others need any help!" Looking around Oichi was doing just fine and had just defeated Hanbei, but Nagamasa was having some trouble against Hideyoshi. Between Hideyoshi's own monkey-like movements and attack patterns, and his partner's super-effective fire-type attacks, it made fighting difficult, and on top of that his Occa Berry had already been used. Escavalier was just about to faint, when I heard singing coming from Oichi's direction. Two different voices could be heard. One I recognized as Jigglypuff and the other was a beautiful sounding song that Oichi herself was singing as a faint pinkish light appeared around both her and our Pokémon. After the songs ended, our Pokémon's health was restored, and Monferno was fast asleep. Quickly, Jigglypuff and Glacier worked with Escavalier to take down their sleeping opponent. Hideyoshi just stared in shock.

"I believe that's a victory!" I cheered as Glacier leaped up and high-fived me.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Eleven

Aftermath of the First Challenge

After the battle Hideyoshi left Ignis and went to who-knows-where. Hanbei and Kanbei also decided they'd like to join our army, which I happily agreed to. Their reasoning was that we had done a decent job but our strategies could use some work. Hanbei then added that, "who better than to help us than Ransei's greatest strategists?" Kanbei was half-forced into it by Hanbei but still agreed nonetheless. Another person walked over after the battle. He looked more like a scholar than a warrior, and his name was Rikyu. A Darumaka stood by his side. I assumed that was his partner Pokémon and he was in fact a warrior. My assumptions were confirmed when he asked to join our little army as well. While I wasn't sure how helpful he would be in battle, but I agreed to his request, seeing as just having more allies is help enough.

Then came the decision of whether to stay here or head back to Aurora. Looking up at the sky, I saw a break in the dark cloud-cover above Ignis. There was a visible amount of sunset, but it definitely looked as if night was about to fall. Plus everyone looked pretty worn out from that battle. I figured out what the smartest decision was, and Glacier wasn't going to like it.

"Seeing as nightfall is coming and we're all pretty worn out, we should probably spend the night in Ignis, and then walk back to Aurora in the morning." Glacier was freaking out suddenly and shrieking something about how she wasn't going to spend one more second in the kingdom of the fiery death-trap. I just gave her a look similar to the one Aya gave Kanetsugu and I whenever we complained. "It's only one night, you won't die! Besides we're all exhausted, and it's almost nightfall. Would you rather we traverse 'the fiery death-trap' while we're half asleep?"

"No…" Glacier just stared down at her feet, not wanted to admit that I was right.

"Good. If there are no other arguments, then it's settled! We'll stay here for the night and then head home in the morning!" After that we all wasted no time with our quick dinner, and all fell asleep very fast that night.

* * *

We all woke up ready to make the half a day's walk back to Aurora the next morning. Glacier was just about dancing with happiness as we left the boundary that separated Ignis' fiery lands from Aurora's wide expanses of grasslands. "You really don't like it there do you?" I asked shaking my head in disbelief, but still smiling at my partner. She just paused, nodded, and went back to her goofball happy dance. It wasn't too long before we arrived back in Aurora after a rather uneventful walk.

The second we stepped back into the castle town, Hoshi's flock arrived to greet us. While we were gone the little bird Pokémon would still need constant care while his wing healed, so Glacier got the idea of leaving him with his family. Two of the Starly who came to greet us were carrying Hoshi's basket which they set down in front of Glacier. The two Pokémon looked quite pleased to see one another as they talked for a few moments before Hoshi hopped out of the basket and onto Glacier's back. Honestly I still couldn't figure out how those two had developed such a close bond so fast, but it was still rather sweet that Glacier had decided to keep an eye on the little bird.

We walked through the rest of the castle town and over to the path that led to the fork in the road between the castle and the battlefield of Aurora. Oichi and I put together lunch and we brought it to the castle garden for us all to eat together, and enjoy one of the few peaceful moments we've had in the last week. It still amazed me that we could eat outside in January here in Southwestern Ransei, since in both Nixtorm and Illusio were bitterly cold this time of year, but here it was quite warm, Most likely due to the tropical settings of the nearby kingdoms of Greenleaf and Fontaine, and the insanely warm Ignis. No matter what caused the weather, it was nice to just sit and enjoy it. And since another agreement of ours was to take a week off from kingdom claiming we'd have plenty of time for weather enjoying.

* * *

It had been nearly a week since we returned from Ignis, and on the last day of our vacation the first eventful thing happened. Hoshi and Glacier had been walking around all morning with us and the rest of our Pokémon, when we reached what had to be the biggest expanse of grassland in Aurora. Hoshi looked up at the sky from Glacier's back with a wistful expression. I felt sorry for the little guy. Birds like him belonged up among the clouds not on the ground like the rest of us. Then only a few moments later came the amazing part. The little bird gently flapped his wings, and the bandages holding the splint in place came loose. A few seconds later he took off towards the sky and it all fell off. Hoshi let out a triumphant cry of pure joy as well did Glacier. After flying in several loops and laps he came back down and flew along-side Glacier as she walked along with rest of us. The two chattered excitedly to each other non-stop, and I just smiled with happiness at our little winged friend's new-found freedom.

* * *

After that day our vacation was officially over and it was back to the battle planning for us. We all met in the main room of Aurora Castle and I laid out a map of the southwestern region of Ransei. The only two kingdoms left in this area were Greenleaf, led by the scholar-warrior Mōri Motonari, and Fontaine, led by the rebellious and somewhat odd Chōsokabe Motochika. Greenleaf, obvious from its name was a primarily Grass-type kingdom. Fontaine, whose name comes from "fountain", is primarily a Water-type kingdom. Our army currently consisted of Glacier and I, Oichi and Jigglypuff, Nagamasa and Escavalier, Hanbei and Pikachu, Kanbei and Lampent, and last but not least Rikyu and Darumaka. After much consulting and debating amongst ourselves we agreed that Greenleaf would be the easiest and decided to go challenge it first, making Fontaine our second target. I already had prepared our supplies so we started out on our long hike through the woods to Greenleaf Castle.


	13. Chapter 13

I'm going to try my best to update this story a lot! I really don't want this story to die in my mind (otherwise known as completely loosing all motivation to write.) so... yeah.

I really have nothing else to say about this chapter so just enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Twelve  
The Road to Greenleaf

The road to Greenleaf is long and winding road with many possible paths that runs through a forest. Without a map, you could truly get lost for days and never find the way out. That and the fact that if you stray off the main paths you'll be trapped among dense forest that you can't see through. Lucky for us we brought a map of the forest labyrinth, a compass, because I'm moderately paranoid, and to top it all off we had Hoshi with us to scout ahead if we weren't sure of the right path. We would only have Hoshi scout if we were beyond lost though. Basically the point is that there is no possible way we can get lost. Of course, that was before Hanbei announced that as we were heading out. I'm ninety point nine percent positive that he jinxed us at that point. Either way, the morning of our forest walk was pretty peaceful and nothing to terribly eventful happened. (Thank Arceus for that!)

* * *

Around midday we found a place along the side of the path to eat lunch before heading off again. The rest of the afternoon was also pretty quiet, which was now starting to creep me out. All this walking through a dense forest, a perfect habitat for many Grass-type Pokémon, and not a single sign of one of them. All this quiet had made me slip into a world of my own within my mind, however, a few minutes later I was pulled out of that world by a shout from Kanbei.

"Stop!" The shout from the normally quiet voiced serious strategist caught us all off-guard, and we all stopped in our tracks and turned back to look in his direction. "Lampent, senses something." He explained. "Hanbei, could you have Pikachu use a Thunder Wave on the path ahead?"

"O… Kay…" Apparently even Hanbei was a little weirded out at this point, as Pikachu nervously glanced up at him. "Come on buddy you heard him." Waves of electrical energy suddenly came off of the little mouse Pokémon and went towards the path in front of us. I personally thought that nothing was going to happen, but then something began to crackle with electricity. It was a huge spider's web. A large red, black, purple, and yellow spider-like Pokémon descended down only a few moments later.

"An Ariados!" I exclaimed. I've never been particularly fond of spider Pokémon, in fact they freak me out more than could believe, so this would be interesting… I closed my eyes for a few moments and gave myself a few reassuring thoughts. _Just stay calm Nya. Don't let your fear stop you from your goal._

I opened my eyes as soon as I heard the sounds of a battle. Glacier must have read my feelings through our link and charged in to fight without waiting for a command. She was doing quite well and fired off one final Ice-type attack to finish it. However, just before the Ice hit Ariados, it fired a single purple colored spike. Glacier didn't move fast enough and got hit by the pointed spike, which didn't seem to do much damage. That was until her eyes closed and she weakly fell to the ground.

"GLACIER!" I cried out running over to my precious partner. I gently picked her up and held her in my arms. Right now she looked so weak and helpless and un-glacier like. She was taking quick, rapid breaths, and her health was rapidly dropping by the second. "She's poisoned." Kanbei stated simply.

"TELL ME SOMETHING I DON'T KNOW!" I shouted back. "Oichi, did we bring any Antidotes?"

"I'm afraid not, and Nya, I really hate to say this but she won't make the trip back to Aurora, or the trip to Greenleaf at the rate her health is dropping." Oichi's face was full of pure sympathy, and I couldn't bring myself to snap the harsh words that I was thinking at her.

"There has to be something we can do" I muttered. "I know she won't die but still…" _I don't like seeing like this… _I finished in my head.

"Umm, Lady Nya? If I may could I see your Glaceon for a moment?" I looked behind me and saw that Rikyu had appeared behind me. Thinking any plan's better than none, I nodded and gently passed my partner to him. Rikyu then pressed his index and middle fingers together and placed them on Glacier's forehead. A faint green glow appeared, and then faded. Then miraculously Glacier's eyes fluttered open. I smiled, "Hey buddy, you alright?" Glacier then leapt into my arms and began nuzzling my cheek. "Good to see you okay! And thanks for earlier." She looked up at me, gave a nod, and then leapt down to go reassure Hoshi.

"Thank you Rikyu! And I must ask, how did you do that?" I asked Rikyu.

"My warrior skill is Detox. It heals poisonings and paralysis." He simply replied.

I was confused. "Warrior skill? No one's ever told me about that."

Oichi quickly joined the conversation at this point. "A warrior skill is a special skill all warriors are born with. What its effect is varies depending on the warrior, but the one certain thing is that it always appears at some point in the warrior's life. Mine you saw in Ignis. It's called Sweet Song and heals all allied Pokémon."

I just blinked as I processed the information. "Odd, mine hasn't appeared yet…" I mumbled, then I spoke up. "Oh well! It doesn't matter we're halfway there or more at this point but the sun is setting. Any good places to set up camp nearby on that map of yours Hanbei?"

"Just a little ahead there's a small path that leads to a clearing, but that's the only one."

"That will work just fine! Thank you!"

We wasted no time setting up camp, eating dinner, and going to sleep that night. Even me who usually stays up beyond late!

* * *

The next day we continued the walk of doom through the forest only to hit a dead-end trail somehow. Hanbei was scratching his head in confusion, while Kanbei actually facepalmed. I closed my eyes ad sighed for a second. There was a question that needed to be asked but I did not want to know the answer. I asked anyway. "What's wrong?"

"Umm…" Was all Hanbei could say. Kanbei finished the thought. "We took a wrong turn."

I closed my eyes again. What was the point of giving the two strategists the map if they just get us lost? "I thought you two said that map that map is the most accurate you can find."

"It is." Kanbei said. "But there's still a possibility of one or two parts being mis-scribed." Hanbei finished.

"So what do you all think? Should we backtrack?" Everyone nodded their agreement, and we started back the way we came only to come to another dead-end path. This was starting to get ridiculous. I was about to send Hoshi to scout ahead, but then I remembered that I had sent him with a message to Illusio that morning. It was at that moment that a green and golden colored monkey-like Pokémon burst from the bushes. "A Pansage!" Rikyu exclaimed. "It's a Pokémon native to these forests. Perhaps it can help us out of here."

Rikyu bent down and began gently talking to the Pokémon. He seemed oblivious to the golden light that had appeared around the both of them, and looked back at us just a few seconds after it faded. "Pansage says he'll help us."

So we all followed Pansage. I must admit the little Pokémon was a good guide, and definitely knew the forest well. We were out of that labyrinth in no time, and at the gates of the Greenleaf castle town. "Thank you, you were a great help." Rikyu told the monkey Pokémon. "You know, I feel a connection to you unlike the one I've shared with any other Pokémon, do you feel it too?" Pansage just leaped up onto Rikyu's shoulder and made a cheerful sound. Rikyu smiled. "I'll take that as a yes. Let's stay together Pansage!"

* * *

Since it was only around midday, we figured that it would still be okay to go challenge Motonari. Our Pokémon all followed behind us happily talking to the newcomer. The only one not conversing with the others was Lampent, who still floated at Kanbei's side. It wasn't too long a walk through the town to the castle, (thank Arceus for that because we were getting some pretty weird looks), and before we knew it we were at the door to the castle. I knocked on the door using a door knocker with a Serpirior design, and a young warrior about my age opened it. "State your business." He stated simply.

"We're here to challenge Lord Motonari."


	14. Chapter 14

Finally have finished the battles up till Greenleaf! For the most part I'm writing the main story part (At least with the warriors in my group) as I recruited them in the main story of the game.

Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Chapter Thirteen  
The Labyrinth of Grass

As we entered the castle we were led into a large library. A man was sitting at a desk with a Servine by his side, and a cup of tea balanced on a large stack of books. "Father, this group is here to see you." Our guide said as his Snivy ran over to Servine.

"Ah, thank you Takamoto." The man said. "Nya I presume? I'm Motonari. I'm guessing you wish to challenge me for control of Greenleaf?"

"Yes and how did you know?"

"News travels fast. I'm sure Motochika has heard of your victory in Ignis by now as well." Motonari then turned to Takamoto. "Could you go tell Motoharu and Takakage that we have challengers? They're likely at the training grounds with Fraxure and Grovyle." Takamoto simply nodded. Snivy quickly leaped up onto his shoulder as they ran out of the room. We just kind of stood there in silence for a while after that. Motonari spoke up after a few short moments. "Feel free to look around. It will be a while before they return." Then he went back to his reading.

In the library there were books on anything you could imagine. Various Pokémon, Ransei legends and folktales, the seventeen kingdoms, you name it and it's probably there. Glacier and I sat down with books on Nixtorm and Illusio. Homesickness had been a small problem that I hid well lately, so just being able to see pictures of the places I called home was nice. Hanbei and Kanbei were sitting with a small stack of books on strategy, while discussing them and deciding if any of them would help in the future. Oichi was sitting with Nagamasa as they looked through a book of flowers, and Rikyu was quietly sitting with Pansage reading a book of poetry and sipping a cup of tea. It was probably one of the weirdest before battle moments I had ever witnessed. Usually everyone's scrambling to prepare, but this felt so calm. It was actually kind of nice.

Then the three other warriors arrived about thirty minutes later and we headed out for the battlefield.

* * *

The battlefield of Greenleaf was giant hedge maze with three banners scattered throughout. The first army to capture all three banners was the victor. The basic plan of ours had been planned on the way over by Hanbei and Kanbei. We would split into three teams of two and wander through carefully seeking the banners. The teams would consist of Oichi and Jigglypuff and Nagamasa and Escavalier, Hanbei and Pikachu and Kanbei and Lampent, and finally Rikyu and Pansage and Glacier and I. Since we were so far away from each other, Hanbei had Pikachu signal with a Thunderbolt to let Motonari's group know we were ready. "All right then. Servine, let's give our guests a cordial welcome!"

"Let's show then what we're made of everybody!" I shouted and our groups quickly scattered in different directions into the maze. Rikyu and I turned each corner with caution, which was driving Glacier crazy. She hates not being able to see the enemy, more than falling into a trap on the battlefield. Luckily for us, Pansage was the expert at keeping her calm and we managed to keep going with little difficulty. It wasn't long before we reached the first banner.

Sadly, at that moment one of Motonari's warriors charged down the path and claimed it first. Unluckily for him his partner was a Fraxure. The warrior held a katana in his hands, and from Motonari's earlier description I could only assume that this was Motoharu. Glacier being the crazy-overconfident Glaceon she is charged towards Fraxure, leaving me to follow behind to attack Motoharu. This certainly wasn't our hardest challenge. Glacier's rapid-fire Ice Beams took out Fraxure in no time, and Rikyu quickly claimed the banner.

"You go ahead, my lady. Pansage and I will defend this spot." I nodded and quickly set off through the rest of the giant maze. After many twists and turns I found Nagamasa fighting against Takakage (who used a yari in battle) and his Grovyle. He noticed Glacier and I as we ran over, and signaled for us to take the path behind us. "I'm fine, but Oichi's protecting the banner down that path. Make sure she's alright right for me, would you Lady Nya?"

I nodded and headed down that path instead. Oichi was at the very end fighting against Takamoto (who like Motoharu used a katana) and his Snivy. Again I stepped forward only to be turned away. "I've got this, Lady Nya!" And with the way she was totally thumping Takamoto I didn't doubt it. "Go find Hanbei and Kanbei. They're likely fighting Motonari right now.

After leaving once again and doing a lot more wandering, I found the two of them. Kanbei was fighting Motonari while Hanbei was lying down taking a nap.

"Takenaka Hanbei! What in the name of Arceus are you doing sleeping in the middle of a battle!?"

Hanbei slowly opened his eyes. "Oh, hey Nya." Then he got up and stretched. As soon as he finished Pikachu hopped back up on his head. "Kanbei said this was his fight and I shouldn't interfere so I decided to take a nap." He stated it as if it should be obvious.

I had to admit I was confused as to why Kanbei would break his own plan, but I did also have to admit he was doing quite well. Motonari was rapidly firing crossbow bolts from the gauntlet on his arm while Kanbei blocked and struck back with the orb of energy coming from the jade orb he held in his hand. Lampent was fighting against Servine, who was firing Leaf Storms, and striking fast with continuous Leaf Blades. Lampent on the other hand was using only Shadow Ball attacks, which led me to the conclusion of what was going on. Kanbei was testing Motonari's strategy and skill. Apparently Hanbei figured out what I was thinking and spoke up.

"I know what you're thinking, and yes he is indeed testing Motonari. It's sort of become a tradition of ours. Since the three of us are renowned as the three greatest strategists in Ransei, whenever we face each other, Kanbei and I take turns testing Motonari in battle as he tests us. It's been going on for a while now though and if I know Kanbei well enough he'll finish it soon."

Sure enough Hanbei was right. Soon a Flame Burst was fired from Lampent defeating Servine swiftly. Both the warriors and Pokémon on both sides looked exhausted. Hanbei walked over and tapped the banner's post which turned its stripes black instead of a greyish color and a black star appeared near the top. The white base color of the banner remained the same as it had formed the banner of Aurora.

"Victory!" I happily cheered.

* * *

As the battle came to an end both groups returned to the library. We all stood around the table as Motonari began to talk. "I knew the day would come when I would face defeat on my own battlefield." He said sighing a little.

"Father…" Said Takamoto a little sadly.

Takamoto had no need to worry about his father however because he quickly lightened up. "Surely I can now be left in peace? I would much rather continue my studies than be in the middle of this war anyway. If I might make two simple requests though they would be for you take good care of my beloved kingdom, and to allow Takamoto to come with you. He still has much to learn and I think it would best for him to go off with you rather that stay here. After all in some things there's only so much you can learn form study, and battle is one of those."

I bowed before I responded. "Trust me I will take great care of Greenleaf, and Takamoto is free to come along if he would like to." Takamoto paused to consider it for a moment or two. He then glanced at Snivy who just nodded.

"I suppose Snivy and I will come then. We will do our best as warriors in your service."

"We'd like to come as well, if that's all right." Motoharu spoke up. "We were impressed by the strength of yourself and that of your allies." Finished Takakage.

"Sure, the more help the better at this point." I replied and for once in my life Glacier nodded in agreement.

As soon as that was settled Oichi spoke up. "Lady Nya, as warlord of Aurora you must know that in a battle you can only have six warriors at a time in your army. This means that one of us will have to stay here."

I did know that, in fact it was one of the things that Kenshin said one of the most important parts of strategy was. Knowing your group's strengths and weaknesses was the other. Seeing as we were about to go to Fontaine I was going to have Kanbei stay behind, but Rikyu willingly volunteered to stay behind in Greenleaf. Knowing that he felt his happiest among books and studying, and away from the battlefield, I decided to give him a break and let Rikyu stay behind. The group that was going to Fontaine decided that it would be best to take a day of rest before heading out once again to restock items and prepare for the battle. For now though we would just focus on getting the well-earned rest that we deserved after the battle.


	15. Chapter 15

This Chapter was a little odd for me since a few plot points came earlier than planned, but I think it still turned out okay!

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Fourteen  
A Letter and New Ally

The next morning I awoke the sun shining in my face and the sound of a certain Starly chirping at the window. Glacier was the first to notice and opened the window to allow Hoshi to fly in. Tied to the little bird's leg was a rolled up message. A reply from Illusio! I grinned as I quickly unrolled the letter and began reading.

Dear Nya,  
We have heard about your recent exploits in Ignis and Greenleaf, as well as your first day in Aurora. It makes me proud to see my student doing so well, and I hope that you may continue to achieve victory in any battle you face.  
~Kenshin

Nya,  
It is good to know you are doing well, as always don't think about only the battle and the victory, but your allies as well. That is my advice to you. …I think Kanetsugu's going to lose it if I don't hand over the brush and ink soon! Oh, well. Write back often, and we all look forward to the day you return to Illusio.  
~With Love, Aya

Hey Nya!  
How goes running a whole kingdom and army? I heard Eevee evolved and that you've named her Glacier. We must have another battle like back in our days in training the next time we meet, Kadabra and I have also gotten much stronger. I'd better cut this one short because we've received word that Shingen's Army is coming to attack us. Don't forget to claim your victories with honor, that's my advice to you!  
~Kanetsugu

Without even waiting a second after finishing the letter reading I pulled out my brush, ink, and paper from the case I kept them in and wrote a reply.

Dear Kenshin, Aya, and Nat,  
How fast does news in Ransei travel exactly? We only captured Greenleaf yesterday! Kenshin, don't worry about me losing, and even if my army does lose a battle, we'll get right back up and try again! Don't you dare lose to Shingen or Nobunaga, okay? Aya, you also have no need to worry, I always think of my allies first and we never go off anywhere until we're ready. You do the same with your army (as I know you always do) and make sure Nat trains extra hard, don't go easy on him! Finally, you Nat! Before you even write back, no I will not stop calling you that! Second running the kingdoms and army isn't too bad. We all look out for each other and our kingdoms so it makes keeping everything under control pretty easy. When I make it to Illusio I certainly promise to have another practice match with you just like old times! It'd be great! And you can't even go a whole one paragraph letter without saying "honor," can you? All three of you keep Illusio and yourselves and the others safe.  
~Nya

I quickly rolled the letter up and gently tied it with a piece of light purple ribbon to Hoshi's leg. The messenger bird quickly flew began his flight towards his destination. Then Glacier and I got up from our sleeping place and got ready to head to the library (which was the meeting place of Greenleaf Castle) and begin our plans for heading to Fontaine.

* * *

Oichi, Nagamasa, Hanbei, Kanbei, Takamoto, Rikyu, Motoharu, Takakage, myself, and all our Pokémon sat in a circle discussing the plan of what to do and who was coming. Based on type advantage we decided that it would be best for Hanbei and Pikachu, Takamoto and Snivy, Takakage and Grovyle, a reluctant Rikyu and Pansage, Oichi and Jigglypuff, and of course Glacier and I to actually go into battle. The remaining three, Nagamasa, Kanbei, and Motoharu, would remain on standby in Aurora, Ignis, and Greenleaf respectively. Today would be spent either traveling to their kingdoms for those not battling and preparing for the battle for those who were. Tomorrow those heading off to Fontaine would board a boat which would get us there much faster than walking, but for now it was time to take a trip to the Greenleaf Castle Town for some shopping.

* * *

We all split up as soon as we stepped into the open market place. Most of us went on our own except Oichi who stayed with me. We both only need to buy some healing items so we went through the various shops trying to find the right deal. Finally we decided on a shop that was selling super potions and each bought ourselves one. Now that the two of us had finished the important shopping we decided to wander around the market place for a while. It was actually a nice place to take a walk. The paths were lined with hundreds of potted and naturally growing flowers and trees. Oichi could name just about every one of them, and pointed out her favorites as we walked along. After a while it grew to become near lunchtime, so we stopped at a ponigiri stall and a noodle shop nearby a park and bought lunch for ourselves and our Pokémon.

Oichi and I's conversations had at this point shifted from normal warrior-warlord conversation to the kinds of things best friends talked about. Even Glacier and Jigglypuff were becoming able to hold a conversation between bites of ponigiri. Over all the years of dealing with war, it was honestly these simple moments that I treasured most, and the reason why I became the Warlord of Aurora. I wanted to create a land where moments like this were the norm and existed every day. Every reminder of my goal was these moments I treasured and no matter how insignificant I never forgot them. Thinking about those moments from my past made me randomly get a happy smile on my face.

"Lady Nya, may I ask why it is you're smiling?" Oichi asked.

"It's nothing. I was just thinking about some moments from my past, that's all." I paused for a few seconds. "You know, seeing as you're my second-in-command, I probably shouldn't keep it all a secret too much longer. Besides with the events that will come in the future, it would just be smart to tell you ahead of time." So then I just kind of randomly told Oichi everything, from leaving Nixtorm, to training with Kenshin, Aya, and Kanetsugu, to my challenge to Nobunaga, and finally my decision to become Aurora's Warlord. Amazingly it didn't seem to throw her off too badly, though the fact that I trained under Kenshin and Aya did make her freak out just a little. More of an impressed freak out though and not a true freak out moment. Telling her about my past must have made me gain her trust in some way, and she decided to tell me about her past.

She was from Dragnor, and left shortly after Nobunaga rose to power. She had traveled through much of the region until she came to Aurora, the one kingdom with no leader. She met Nagamasa shortly after, and the two decided to look after the kingdom until a warlord had been appointed. Then three years later, I came.

We talked about other things after that, and before we knew it, the time had come to meet up with the others to discuss the final strategy. As we walked back to the castle I realized I had gained one thing today, someone who I could truly confide in on matters like this. I thought more on this when I heard a sharp cry from nearby that snapped me out of it. Oichi and I looked down an alleyway next to us and saw a Dratini cornered by a group of various Grass-type Pokémon. Glacier and I started to react when Oichi stepped forward first. "Jigglypuff, use Sing!" She command as her Pokémon quickly began to sing a lullaby-like melody. As the enemy fell asleep she knelt down and gently began speaking to Dratini. "Come here little one, I won't hurt you." The Dratini looked nervous at first, but then it seemed to decide since Oichi has saved it she couldn't be too dangerous and gently wrapped itself around her arm. A golden light quickly appeared around both of them. As it disappeared, Dratini smiled as Oichi blinked twice. "Well then, welcome to the group little one." The initial shock had worn off and Oichi was now smiling as we continued our walk back to the castle.

We were the last ones to make it back to the castle, and the others were already there when we arrived. The six of us sat around a table in the library to finalize our battle plans before heading out tomorrow. We ran through just about every scenario until I thought my head would never stop hurting. Strategy is one of the most important things in battle, and I do love using it, but there's only so much your brain can think through before you need a break. Thank goodness we had run through everything! I don't think there could be any other things we could encounter, and even if there were we could probably just modify one of the many strategies Hanbei had crafted.

It was late when we finished the meeting, and we all went to our rooms to rest up for the next day's journey.

* * *

The next morning we headed to the small boat that would take us along the river route to Fontaine. Honestly there were two paths that you could take to the kingdom of fountains and waterfalls, a land route and a water route, but the land route crossed over the river so many times that it was decided that we would sail along the river. There may have also been the small detail that I had never been in a boat before and was curious as to what it was like, but that was never mentioned to the others.

On that note I must say that it was quite an interesting experience. The boat rocked gently in the river's current, and it was a very smooth trip since we were following in the direction of the river's flow. Even Glacier seemed to enjoying herself. After a while I completely abandoned seriousness, and called her over to the edge of the boat with me. As she stood next to me Glacier was met with a splash of water in the face. She blinked a couple times in response then grinned as she retaliated with a splash of her own. The two of us ended up in a huge splash fight that left us both laughing and grinning like idiots. That is until we heard a voice behind us.

"Lady Nya, what are you doing?" Glacier and I turned to see Hanbei and Oichi standing directly behind us. "It's very hard to sleep when you two make that much noise you know." Said Hanbei.

I managed to regain a serious composure for a few moments to respond. "I'm sorry, we'll try to keep it down." I immediately had to turn my head back to looking at the water or else the seriousness would have been lost. As soon as Hanbei had turned to leave Glacier and I both began shaking with silent laughter. It must have been the environment we were in, but something had turned us from our usual selves into carefree goofs. Oichi sat down next to us with Dratini and Jigglypuff at her side. She just smiled and shook her head.

"I don't think I've ever seen you like this, my lady. Are you feeling okay?" I knew that she was joking, from the tone in her voice. Oichi couldn't hide the joking tone with one of seriousness even if she tried at that point. The smile didn't help either.

"I've been like this before, just maybe not since I came to Aurora." I didn't look up for one second from the water that looked as if it was made from pure crystal as the sun shone on its surface. "I think it was something to do with the sun and the peaceful environment of the river. It just feels like it washes away all your worries just by sitting by it."

"I completely understand." Oichi said still smiling. "I feel the same way when I'm sitting among flowers. Being in areas of peace makes you forget about all the land's troubles."

The rest of the boat ride was spent far more quietly. The Pokémon were all hanging out together and getting to know Dratini, while their partners were off doing their own things. Hanbei was surprisingly awake and was playing a game of chess against Takamoto, while Motoharu and Takakage were watching. Oichi was sketching a few of the flowers that could be seen along the river banks. And surprisingly I was composing haiku's. Something I hadn't done in who knows how long.

Finally we arrived in Fontaine and I will admit that I may have embarrassed myself with my reaction. The castle town of Fontaine had to be the most gorgeous thing I had seen in all my travels. Canals formed the main roads and the main form of travel was very small boats that acted as a ferry service around the city. There were sidewalks along-side the canals, but they were mostly for the paths that led to building's and shops. The most amazing part of the kingdom was all the fountains and waterfalls that led to the flow of the water. The entire place looked like something out of a storybook. In fact it seemed almost too unreal for us to even be really there.

Finally, I was snapped out of my amazement by the arrival at the castle. We un-boarded the boat, thanked the captain, then walked up to front door and announced our challenge.


	16. Chapter 16

Got a new chapter written! If anyone ever has any questions about any of the weapons the side-characters use, don't hesitate to ask. Half of them I knew nothing about until I did some research!

Now, without farther ado, let's stat this chapter!

* * *

Chapter Fifteen  
River Rhythms

We walked down the corridors of the castle to the meeting area, which looked like a large concert hall. Four men stood there each practicing a different instrument. One of them had a Dewott at his side and was playing a shamisen. Another had a Panpour sitting on his shoulder as he played a harp. The third was playing a flute and had an Oshawott listening intently. And the fourth was playing a drum with his Wooper. They suddenly came to a stop as soon as we entered the room. "Nya, I'm assuming?" Said the one with the Dewott.

"You're correct, and I'm going to assume that you're Motochika."

He played a few notes on the shamisen as he spoke. "That's right. I'm guessing you're here to challenge me? I heard about you're victories in Ignis and Greenleaf, though I always thought we'd meet on the battlefield of your kingdom, not here. I suppose it doesn't matter. A battle's a battle no matter where it takes place." Motochika then turned to his warriors. "Put your instruments away, gather your weapons, and then meet us on the battlefield."

"Yes Lord Motochika!" The three of them shouted as they quickly ran off, their Pokémon right behind them, as we headed towards the battlefield.

* * *

The battlefield looked surprisingly simple compared to the rest of the kingdom. It consisted of a large grassy field, with a trench running through it. Two switches were located on the ground on either side of the trench in two locations, and an ornate fountain with the design of many water-type Pokémon flowed on one side of the field.

"I can hear the rhythm of fate." Announced Motochika, punctuating his sentence with a few strums of his shamisen. "Morichika, Nobuchika, you know what to do."

"Yes father." The two of them said as they moved forward. Morichika was the one from earlier with the Oshawott, and Nobuchika was the one with the Panpour. Instead of their instruments, they now held a staff and yari. They had just stepped on the switches on their side of the field and retreated a few seconds later as the water-level increased. I realized that the flow of the battle was completely dependent on the flow of the canal. The tide could turn in either side's favor depending on the water level and who could cross.

We still have a strategy planned for this, right Hanbei?" He nodded in response and I turned to the rest of my army. "All right then, let's show them what we're made of everybody!" At the shout of my traditional battle cry the battle truly began.

First step was to make it so we could cross over to the other side, so we had to free the dams by stepping on the switches. That was Hanbei and I's first job in this battle. Takamoto, Rikyu, and Takakage would follow behind for an attack, and Oichi would stay back for this one in case our Pokémon needed healing. When we planned this Hanbei had figured that Motochika would have heard of our armies other victories and prepare accordingly so we decided that having a healer stay back just in case maybe a smart idea.

As soon as we managed to release the dams the all-out battle to keep them open or attempt to shut them began. Takakage charged at Morichika and I heard the clang of steel as Takakage's katana clashed against the metal staff held in the other warrior's hands. The leaves on Grovyle's elbows had extended into blades of grass energy, while a blade of water energy extended from the shell that Oshawott carried. Takamoto challenged Chikamasa the warrior with the Wooper, who like Takamoto wielded a katana in battle. Last but not least, our reluctant Rikyu held a shakujō in his hands as Pansage jumped down from his shoulder to challenge the yari wielding Nobuchika and his Panpour. It was up to Hanbei and me to defeat Motochika, who was still holding only his shamisen and no weapons, and Glacier and Pikachu's job to defeat Dewott.

Both Hanbei and I ran over to where Motochika was standing as quickly as possible. The second we arrived I asked him if he was going to get a weapon. Motochika's only response was a simple shake of his head. I just shrugged. "Suit yourself." Then I charged forward with both wakizashi in my hands only get hit squarely on the head by Motochika's shamisen. Stumbled backward half in shock and half because it seriously hurt! Glacier paused her dodging of the dual razor shell wielding Dewott and gave me a quick glace as if to ask if I was alright. I just nodded, and her response was the same as she went back to aiding Pikachu. This was going to be trickier than I thought…

"Hanbei, you got a plan?" Hanbei held up his index finger and winked. "Of course I do! I am a genius after all! Against a weapon like that a distance attack may be our best bet. However, from previous experiences, I do know that he can use the sound waves as a weapon as well. This makes either type of attack risky. Our best bet is to charge at hi with everything we've got!"

_That sounds like a plan Glacier would come up with, but it does seem like just about the only choice at this point… _"Very well, let's do this!" I wasted no seconds charging forward in another attack, but this time I dodged the blow from the shamisen, and struck back only to have Motochika narrowly slip away from the attack. Hanbei swung the cord on his compass ready to send it flying forward, buck got knocked back by the sound wave from a strummed note.

Our Pokémon were surprisingly doing far better than we were. Dewott was reeling from the rapid barrage of Electro Ball and Shadow Ball attacks. It wouldn't be long before Dewott officially went down. The two of us just had to hold up against Motochika a little longer.

Hanbei was ready to launch another attack and we used that as the perfect distraction. As Motochika was pre-occupied with that, I would sneak around and hit him from behind. Just as I was about to lower my sword Motochika turned around and blocked the strike. Hanbei was just about to actually land a blow when I heard a cheer rise up from the direction of Glacier and Pikachu. They were standing next to a knocked out Dewott, and the three of us lowered our weapons in a cease-fire.

I glanced around the battlefield to see who was left. Takamoto and Takakage had successfully defeated their opponents. The only one left was Rikyu who's Pansage defeated Panpour only mere moments after I glanced over. The poor scholar lowered the staff he held and gave a sigh of relief. Before declaring our victory this time, I made a mental note to let him stay back during the next battle.

* * *

We recruited no warriors to our side this time, but Motochika did have some final words of parting before we left. "You won fair and square; the kingdom of Fontaine is yours. Just because my castle is lost though, that doesn't mean my Pokémon will leave me. Together Dewott and I will continue to resist against the tides of fate."

That statement for some reason made me smile a little. I felt the same way with Glacier. No matter what fate would throw in our path, may it be victory defeat or whatever; we would always fight and stand our ground. "You know what? I understand that completely. And even though we were just enemies, I hope you continue towards your goal, whatever it may be!"

It was Motochika's turn to smile. "Thank you Nya. I must say that I wish the same for you." And with that he just left and we began our journey back to Aurora.


	17. Chapter 17

All right, I've written chapter sixteen, but I'm honestly not too sure about it. It's mostly just what came to my head as I was writing, so comments on this one are greatly appreciated! Also on on another note it recently snowed in the first time in _forever _where I'm from, so I felt inspired to write a one-shot snow day fic that I'll be posting soon. Also if anyone has suggestions on what should happen in between Pugilis and Chrysalia, please let me know! The ones for Greenleaf and Fontaine came really easily to me, but I started hitting a few problems in this chapter with ideas.

I'll just let the chapter begin now!

* * *

Chapter Sixteen  
The Next Step

We arrived in Aurora after a nicely uneventful journey. The whole group sat around a banquet table in the castle as we celebrated the victories in this corner of Ransei. Oichi was the only one who didn't really look happy. She had a serious expression on her face, and appeared to be lost in thought. I looked at Nagamasa who was sitting next to her, and mouthed, "Do you know what's wrong?" He only shook his head and shrugged. I got up and tapped Oichi on the shoulder which caused her to jump in surprise. "Mind coming with me for a second?" I simply asked. She shook her head and got up to follow.

* * *

The two of us walked into the simple garden that made up the courtyard of Aurora castle. We sat beneath a cherry tree though due to it being only February, there were no blossoms yet. It still made a good place to sit though. After a few moments of silence, I finally spoke up.

"What's wrong Oichi?"

The question seemed to catch her off guard as if she thought I hadn't noticed. Oichi glanced down at her feet for a moment then sighed and answered. "I know that you've heard the stories, and I know that you're aware of the crisis in the east, but… To me something doesn't quite feel right."

"Do you know what it is?" The uncertainty in Oichi's voice seemed odd to me. Usually she's the one who keeps our spirits up.

"Yeah, I think I do. But I also believe I know the resolution to this." Oichi smiled. "You have nothing to worry about Lady Nya!"

I smiled back. "That's good! Now we should probably get back before anyone wonders where we went!"

Oichi nodded and we walked back to the banquet hall. I had to admit, I was curious as to what exactly was conflicting her, but I figured it was best not to ask. She said she had it figured out, so it was best to let it go.

* * *

The next day after the banquet we were all sitting around a table once again, but this time it was in the strategy hall around the table with the map of Ransei. We were deciding on what our next move should be. Kanbei stated f we were still going after the goal to unite the region, it would be smart to challenge the kingdoms of North-western Ransei. Violight, The Electric-type kingdom led by Tachibana Ginchiyo and Tachibana Muneshige, Chrysalia, the Bug-type kingdom led by Imagawa Yoshimoto, and Pugilis, the Fighting-type kingdom led by Shimazu Yoshihiro. Glacier gave me a terrified look at the mention of Pugilis then gave me smile and said, "Save the most painful for last would you?"

I looked up the rest of our army. "All right then, our attacking order will be Violight, Chrysalia, and then Pugilis. For the attack on Violight we'll have Oichi, Nagamasa, Hanbei, Kanbei, Motoharu, and myself come along. Rikyu, you'll remain on standby in Greenleaf, and Takamoto and Takakage, I'll have you two stay in Fontaine. If you all understand your orders then you're dismissed to make any preparations you may need to."

I noticed after everyone left Hanbei was still there staring at the map on the table. I walked over and looked as well, trying to figure out what he was seeing. I saw absolutely nothing wrong with the kingdom order based on the warriors in our army, so it to be something else. "Is something wrong Hanbei?"

"Oh! I was just thinking that as we get farther from this area, the walking distance becomes greater. I think I have a solution to that though. Do you mind if we take a quick detour to Ignis before we go to Violight?"

Glacier was looking up at the sky and practically praying I'd say "no." I had already given her one thing of safety in the plans today though, and I had to admit I was curious what Hanbei's plan was. Much to the displeasure of my partner, I had to say, "Yes." And so it was agreed we would take a one day detour to Ignis.

* * *

We arrived in Ignis a few hours later after everyone heading to Violight had finished their preparations. We were quickly led to a large stable filled with Ponyta. Two of the fiery horse Pokémon seemed pretty close to both Hanbei and Kanbei. The two of them walked over gave the Ponyta an apple and a gentle pat on the head. "We've already linked with these two." Kanbei explained. "And once you link with one, you can ride it without any verbal instructions." Hanbei finished. "Here we'll even help you choose one." Hanbei led Oichi and Nagamasa over to two Ponyta who were sharing a pen. Apparently they were the gentlest ones and an inseparable brother-sister pair. Kanbei led Motoharu over to link with his, and as for me, I ended up immediately linking with a Ponyta I turned around and met eyes with. It was unintentional of course, but he seemed like the perfect one. I could see a fire burn within the Pokémon's eyes, but it wasn't a harsh fire like with most fire-types. It was a fire that was both gentle and intimidating at the same time. I picked up a nearby apple and gave it to my new partner who ate it happily. He then pressed his face against mine, and I gave him a hug. "Welcome to the group Ta!" I said happily. Glacier however looked defiant. "I don't do well with heat Nya, and you know it! Good luck getting me to ride with you."

"Well then, I hope you like walking the entire way to Violight. It's a two-day ride on horseback. And a four-day walk on foot." Glacier glanced away as she replied. "I'll sit on your shoulder if that's alright…" I smiled. "You my friend have too much pride, but feel free!"

I quickly put a saddle and reins on the horse Pokémon as the others did, and got on. Glacier hopped up onto my shoulder shortly after, but her tail grazed the flame of Ta's tail. She was startled but felt no pain. "There's no heat!" She marveled. I realized that from the moment we got on. "I think that's why we have to link with them before we can ride. I read when we were in Motonari's library that Ponyta are incapable of burning those they have formed a bond of trust with. I guess that's true."

Glacier literally bowed in respect, which she only does when she' being absolutely sincere, and apologized. "I'm terribly sorry if I offended you earlier." Ta just gave a simple nod of acceptance and we continued down the road.

* * *

An hour or so later we arrived at the crossroads to Greenleaf and Violight. Of course we turned down the path to Violight, and began our two-day trip to the kingdom of storms. It got dark rather quickly though so we continued only until we found a decent place to set up camp.

After we gathered firewood, and started it with assistance from Kanbei's Lampent, we cooked dinner and had random conversations around the campfire. Hanbei of course, had fallen asleep right after dinner, but the rest of us were up a lot later. Oichi Nagamasa and I ended up looking up at the stars and naming any of the constellations we could find, while Kanbei was sitting by himself with Lampent. After a while, Motoharu came over and joined the conversation. He even added up pointing out a bunch that we had missed. When we all stared at him in surprise, He quickly explained that Motonari had made all three of them study many things and not just battle, one of those things being astronomy. The three of nodded in understanding, it made perfect sense. After several minutes of chatting and stargazing the four of finally decided to get some rest for the journey tomorrow.

* * *

The next day nothing too eventful happened, except for Hoshi arrived with a letter tied with a grey ribbon. I knew exactly who it was from and, still holding on to the reins with one hand, opened and read it.

Nya,  
Congratulations on capturing all the kingdoms in South-western Ransei. I suppose seeing as your goal is to defeat Nobunaga you'll be going for the kingdoms of Violight, Chrysalia, and Pugilis next. As always I wish you luck in all your future battles.  
~Kenshin

Hey Nya!  
I actually managed to grab the brush before Aya this time! I think it's a miracle! And speaking of which, what exactly did you mean by "Don't go easy on him in any training sessions?" You know as well as I do that Aya never goes easy on us! In fact, in case you've forgotten we used to look forward to days we'd get to train with Kenshin, because he went far easier on us! And I can go a whole letter without saying "honor," but I only do that because it seems to annoy you! Plus it's payback for calling me "Nat." I'd better give the brush to Aya now, she's giving me that look… As always, fight with honor!  
~Kanetsugu

Dear Nya,  
It's always good to hear from you, and it's good to hear that you never forget to put your allies first. Secondly, you have absolutely to worry about with the training sessions. Kanetsugu now has to battle against me since you're no longer here, and I currently have a perfect record of no defeats. We all look forward to the day you return to Illusio, whether it's for a battle or just a visit.  
~With love, Aya

I smiled as I gently rolled it back up, and set it in the small bag of supplies I was carrying with me. I made a mental note to respond as soon as we arrived at tonight's campsite, since there was no way I could properly write kanji while on horseback. My handwriting is almost illegible already when I'm writing at a desk, or non-moving flat surface. I didn't want to make them try to decipher the writing that I was imaging from writing while still riding on Ta.

* * *

We rode for a full day, stopping at nightfall once again to set up camp. Firewood was gathered and a fire was ignited to cook dinner and provide light. I got my writing kit out of my bag, and used to firelight to help write my message.

Dear Illusio Trio,  
Sorry, I got lazy with addressing it this time. To Kenshin, thank you, and yes you're right about our plan. I hope to be able to make it into Eastern Ransei as soon as possible, but our little group still won't over-do it too much. As for you Nat, you should know better than to take the brush before Aya can get it! No wonder she gave you the all-too-familiar glare of doom! And of course I remember those days back when were in training together. I was just giving Aya a friendly reminder, that's all! Aya, I'm glad to hear that you look forward to our messages, and I'm glad to hear that your training methods haven't changed one bit! It'd strange if they did, and I honestly have to thank you for them because I am now finding all of it oddly helpful. I also look forward to the day we all meet again, and I hope that day may arrive soon!  
~Nya

I gently rolled the message and placed into the writing kit, next to the purple message ribbons. "You can send it in the morning Hoshi." I said punctuating the sentence with a yawn. "We all need our rest tonight since we'll be arriving in Violight tomorrow. The little bird Pokémon nodded and curled up next to a sleeping Glacier. Hoshi tucked his beneath his wing and quickly fell asleep, as did the rest of us once dinner was eaten.

* * *

Contrary to my "we all need sleep" comment, I was awoken in the middle of the night by a certain Glaceon. "This better not be a 'There's an Ariados! Oh, wait, false alarm…' moment." I mumbled raising my head. Glacier just shushed me and pointed towards a place near the edge of the camp. Kanbei was sitting next to an injured Shinx, and was gently bandaging its leg. Two Pokémon, a Pichu and a Mareep who I assumed were its friends, were watching rather nervously. As soon as the little Pokemon's leg was bandaged properly, it walked around a little to test itself. The Shinx had a bit of a limp and winced a little when it put too much pressure down on that leg, but otherwise seemed fine. The Pokemon gave a small bow in thanks, and then walked off cautiously with it's friends. I on the other hand rolled over and tried to go to sleep, but smiled momentarily with a single thought._What do you know? Kuroda Kanbei has a heart after all..._

* * *

The next day we arrived at the top of a cliff over looking a large castle and castle-town with dark lighting clouds circling above it. I looked behind to the rest of the group and announced, "Welcome to Violight I suppose." And we began our trek down the steep path leading down the cliff, to the path to Violight Castle.


	18. Chapter 18

This is the farthest I've ever made it on a story in my life, usually I give up way too fast, but this one's really holding my attention! In regards to the story, the inspiration for this chapter came from when I saw Ginchiyo's sword in Samurai Warriors 3. I noticed that when she's using it in battle it has a little bit of lightning crackling around it, and so this is basically my interpretation of what would happen if you blocked or got hit by a sword like that.

As always, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Chapter Seventeen  
A Duel Of Lighting

We left our Ponytas in a grassy field next to the castle entrance before entering. All of us figured that no one would be stupid enough to steal a warrior's Pokémon, let alone Ponytas who had formed links with warriors. Plus I gave Ta the job of protecting them, and knowing him, he'd do his job well.

We entered the castle and walked down the long hallway to the meeting room. Motonari's had been a library and Motochika's had been a concert hall, so I had no idea what to expect from Ginchiyo's. However, I should've seen what it was coming. A weapons room with various weapons hanging on the wall made perfect sense.

As we walked in the five warriors surrounding the planning table looked up. Two of them, a woman with a Luxio at her side and a man with a Staravia perched on his arm, walked over to our group. "So you're Nya, are you?" The woman asked, and I nodded in response. "I was wondering what you'd be like, and I must say you're no match for Luxio and I!"

Glacier literally growled and bred her teeth. That kind of insult was fighting words to her, and would definitely not be taken lightly later. It looked like she was actually about to go over there, and I was ready to hold her back. This was not necessary as the man with the Staravia was laughing who I suspected was Ginchiyo.

"What's so funny, Muneshige!?" Ginchiyo demanded.

"You. You're talking like that to a warrior before you've done battle again like you always do. Remember when you did that the first time we fought Yoshihiro?" Muneshige replied still grinning like an idiot.

Ginchiyo's face was now completely red from anger or embarrassment I didn't know. Though if I had to guess, I'd say a little of both. "They argue like an old married couple." I whispered to I whispered to Glacier, who only nodded. She was still glaring at Luxio. Oichi heard my comment and whispered back. "It may interest you to know that those two are in fact married." I just smiled. _Can I call it or what?_

The two of them had apparently finished their side argument and turned back to us. "I believe now is the time to stop talking and prove our might on the field of battle." Ginchiyo said as she motioned for her army to come. "About time." Glacier muttered walking at my side as we followed Ginchiyo's group to the battlefield of Violight.

It had to be the most insane place I had seen so far. Violight's battlefield was an open area that had no shielding from the purplish storm clouds that gathered over the kingdom. There were also walkways that were the only thing standing between us and an electrically charged area below. To top it all off, there where strange tesla coil like things in the center and in each corner. I had no idea what in the name of Arceus those things did, but I was not looking forward to finding out.

"Let's show them what we're made of." Glacier said winking at me. I smiled, "That's my line!" But nonetheless I gave a simple signal to charge forward and the battle began. Kanbei was going to go after Ginchiyo in the original plan, but I knew for a fact that Glacier now had other plans. When I asked if we could trade places, Kanbei agreed but didn't look too happy about changing the plan. Glacier on the other hand looked ecstatic, and almost charged ahead of me. I put a hand on her head though, and she stayed at my side as we made our way over to where Ginchiyo and Luxio were standing. She was holding a jagged sword that crackled slightly with lightning energy. _You hold the most awful grudges Glacier…_

"Our clan, the Tachibana, is famed throughout Ransei for our Electric-type Pokémon. We built this place and we _did not _intend it as a haven for the likes of you!" Ginchiyo shouted as she charged forward with her sword ready to be brought down. Luxio launched a Spark attack which Glacier blocked with an Ice Shard. I blocked Ginchiyo's sword strike with my swords, and felt a small tingle of electricity go up my arms as the lightning sword made contact. To many blows like that and my arms would likely go numb. "Glacier! Don't mess around this time!" She fired a Shadow Ball at Luxio and shouted back, "Don't worry, I won't!"

I ended up dodging most of the strikes instead of blocking. The only time I made contact with the sword was if there was absolutely no way I'd be able to safely dodge. If just blocking made my arms go funny, I couldn't imagine what getting cut by that sword would feel like! I kind of got an idea though when my dodge failed and I got hit by the flat of the blade on my right arm. It got a very large shock and was disabled. I was hoping it was temporary, because while I could use a sword with my left, it was weaker than my right, and I really can't fight with just my left. _C'mon Glacier… Hurry up!_

I had to block a few more strikes with one hand before Glacier finally took out Luxio. I walked over to Oichi and asked her about the injuries. She said the tingling in my left arm would go away soon, but my right would take longer to heal and that would mean no battles for at least two weeks by her estimate. Maybe longer. I sighed at the last statement, and decided to watch the battle as everyone finished. The only two left were Hanbei and Muneshige. Who was quickly defeated when Pikachu fired a barrage of Electro Balls at Staravia, both shocking the bird and knocking it out of the sky. It was in a way both our easiest and most difficult victory.

After the battle we all stood in Violight's meeting room once again. "That was a fine contest." Ginchiyo said with no signs of regret in her voice. "Violight Castle is yours to use as you see fit."

Muneshige on the other hand, looked surprised by Ginchiyo's statement. "You don't mind?" He asked.

Ginchiyo shook her head. "No, my conscience is clear. This battle did not bring shame on the Tachibana. We protected our honor, and that is all that matters. However, if it is all right, may we join you Lady Nya?"

The warrior who had been Nagamasa's opponent, Sōrin, had his Pikachu currently sitting on his shoulder, and his tessen folded up in his right hand. He also requested to join. I glanced at my group to see if they were alright with the three newcomers, and I saw no objections. "Alright then, feel free! Having more allies will be helpful as we go farther into Ransei!"

The three of them nodded. "We won't let you down."

It was decided after all of that that we would take a long break from challenging kingdoms. During this break the members of the army could train, relax, or whatever they wanted to do. As for me, I was going to start a three-day journey to go see some old friends in the morning. The rest of the day was spent with Glacier, Hoshi, and Ta preparing for this. Hoshi was ready to fly ahead and deliver a letter (Which made me remember that I'd forgotten to give him the reply to send to Illusio!) but I told the little bird Pokémon that I'd just surprise them. After making the preparations we all went to sleep and rested up for tomorrow.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 18  
Revisiting Old Friends

I left a note on the table of the meeting room that morning before I left. I hadn't told anyone where I was going, and currently it was really early, but I figured a leader should tell her group where she was going. I walked over to the place where Ta had rested with the other Ponytas for the night, and gently woke him up. Glacier ran out of the castle a few moments later with Hoshi flying closely behind her. As soon as we were completely ready the four of us began our journey to one of the two places I could genuinely call home.

* * *

The three day walk was long and very uneventful. Literally nothing happened, and knowing my luck I was sure we'd run into a problem or two. It was quite a relief when that didn't happen. On the third day we were finally walking through a town surrounded by mountains of purple crystals. As we came to the floating castle I left Ta in the large grassy field with a few other Ponyta and Rapidash, and then crossed the bridge of purple crystal that led to the entrance. I walked into Illusio's meeting room and found Aya, Kanetsugu, and Kenshin sitting around the map table talking. "Hey there." I said casually waving.

The three of them turned in surprise towards me, and I was quickly greeted with a hug from Kanetsugu. I hugged him back with my left arm. The hug broke apart after a few seconds and Aya spoke up. "It's good to see you Nya."

I smiled. "It's good to see you three as well! Sorry about the surprise visit, but we had a little problem while fighting Ginchiyo, which led us to the decision of a long break. So I decided it might be nice to come see you again."

Kenshin spoke up this time. "It's fine." He replied simply. Aya just gave me a look that said, "My brother will never change." Which made me smile, and think, _you all will never change, I hope! _I was about to say something, when Kanetsugu suddenly started talking. "Is that Glaceon your Eevee!? You never told us she evolved!"

I just blinked and looked at my partner. Then I looked back at Kanetsugu. "I didn't? I guess I'm used to her being how she is. Especially since personality-wise she hasn't changed much. I call her Glacier now though." Glacier and Hoshi walked over to Kadabra, Gallade, and Froslass, and struck up a conversation with them. I continued to talk to Kenshin, Aya, and Kanetsugu as we told stories and caught up on recent events. After a while Aya made the suggestion of testing my battle skills, but I told her that would have to wait since the battle against Ginchiyo messed up my right arm. I did agree however, that as soon as was completely healed, I would accept both her challenge and Kanetsugu's from one of the earlier letters. This seemed to make both of them happy as Aya gave a simple nod and had her typical calm smile, while Kanetsugu had a cheerful grin on his face. It went quiet for a few seconds, then a thought came into my head.

"Hey Aya, are the Goldeen still living in that pond I used to visit?"

"You mean Nijisakana and Kazan?" She replied. "Of course. In fact, I think they kind of miss the days when you would sit there and toss them those berry treats you used to make."

I smiled. I had made a bunch of those treats the day before and brought them with me specifically for those two. "I think I'll pay them a visit then! Glacier, Hoshi, you two can come with or stay here, I don't mind either way!" And with that I left the room, my two partners following behind only a few moments later.

* * *

After only a few minutes, Glacier, Hoshi and I arrived at the pond. I gently sat down next to the edge and threw a few berry treats into the pond. The two Goldeen quickly came up to the surface, ate the treats, and swam over to the edge where I was sitting. Kazan was a normal orangeish-red and white colored Goldeen, where Nijisakana had a golden color to her fins. It was good to see both of them. Even without a link, I was pretty close to the goldfish Pokémon, and not because I came and fed them. Often times when I came here I didn't give them treats, it was just to hang out and relax. Honestly, it's the best place on the castle grounds to do that. I used to sit alone with Glacier and the two Goldeen just writing haiku and talking with the three of them. Glacier would translate what the Goldeen would say since I couldn't understand them, but still it was always a nice place to hide away from training for the day.

Today we all stayed there until sunset. As it was starting to get dark we headed back to the castle and had dinner with Kenshin, Aya, and Kanetsugu. After that Glacier, Hoshi, and I went to our room and fell asleep very quickly.

* * *

The next morning Kanetsugu walked over to me while I was reading, and asked if I'd like to take a walk to the market with him. Aya asked him to run a few errands, and he thought we could go do it together. I pretended to think about it for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "Of course, I'd love to!" Hoshi and Glacier had been chasing each other around, but quickly stopped and walked over. Hoshi was sitting on Glacier's head as usual. Since Kadabra was coming along the two of them decided to as well, and we all headed off together.

* * *

It wasn't too long a walk to the marketplace, and it went by even faster since we held a conversation the whole way over. Kanetsugu and I talked about recent times, and our Pokémon were chattering behind us the whole way. Mainly Aya's list that she gave us was for groceries and battle items so we also planned out the order. Deciding that it might be smartest to get the battle items first we went to those shops upon entering.

First was the herbal shop where you could buy potions and berries. There we bought some Super Potions and Sitrus Berries. After that we headed off to the place that sold all the other battle items and bought the other random stuff on the list. Finally we picked up all the food items that were on the list. As we were leaving the castle, I had the idea of bringing Ta with us. We had him, willingly of course, pull a cart with the supplies back to the castle while we continued looking around.

After finishing the errands for Aya, we stopped by the Ponigiri Shop and bought some for our Pokémon, while the two of us stopped by a noodle shop for lunch. That's when a question that I'd been asking in my head since I got here but was nervous to ask around Aya was finally asked.

"So how's training with Aya going?"

Kanetsugu's eyes winded in horror. _It can't be that bad. _I thought. Apparently I was wrong at least according to Kanetsugu. "I know what you're thinking Nya, and it is that bad! When battling against her she shows no mercy! Seriously, come watch a training session tomorrow, and you'll understand!"

I of course agreed to come without hesitation. I think Kanetsugu was regretting saying that, and he quickly changed the subject, as he asked about all the kingdoms I'd been to. I told him all about Aurora's beautiful simplicity, Ignis' fiery volcanoes, the peaceful atmosphere of Greenleaf, Fontaine's gorgeous waterfalls and canal cities, and the deadly lightning of Violight. I honestly didn't think he'd be all that interested, as it was a subject change attempt, but Kanetsugu was very enthusiastic about it all. He even seemed a little envious about getting to see all these different places, but it was only a little.

The conversation lasted a while longer before we went back to wandering around with our Pokémon. Most of the time was spent window-shopping and only looking at things, but when we got to a jewelry stall I found an item that I couldn't resist. (And I'm well aware of the girl stereotype I'm living up to right now but I don't care!) It was a necklace made of ice-blue crystal beads and had a large silver snowflake pendant in the center. It just reminded me of my home in Nixtorm from the moment I saw it, and it was at a reasonable price, so of course I bought it. I put it on right away and smiled as I looked down at the pendant. Kanetsugu just shook his head and he didn't even need to say a word for me to know what he was thinking.

Again we didn't make it back to the castle until sundown, but it was a nice day. And tomorrow I'd get to see how Kanetsugu does against Aya, which should be interesting! From the look on Glacier's face I could immediately tell that she was looking forward to it, and I knew exactly who she was going to cheer for!

* * *

Note: The Goldeen in this chapter are actually named after two of my old pet fish, but translated into Japanese. Nijisakana translated means Rainbowfish and Kazan means Volcano. I think that's all for chapter notes so time for review answering!


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

Roadblocks and Clearings

"Glacier!" I cried out running towards my fallen partner as the battle ended. Her eyes were lightly closed as she lay in the snow. I gently picked Glacier up and held her in my arms. Her eyes gently fluttered open, and I held out an Oren Berry, which she slowly began to eat. Aya and Kanetsugu walked over and looked down at us.

"Is she alright?" Aya asked in her usual way to calm voice.

Glacier weakly looked up at me and smiled. She looked a little woozy and delirious, but otherwise okay. "I think she's okay."

"Told you Lady Aya doesn't hold back." Kanetsugu said, his Kadabra nodding in agreement. Glacier didn't even bother arguing at that point, and even gave a weak nod in response. "Yeah, I guess the nickname works!" I replied smiling at Kanetsugu as his eyes widened in fear at the mention of that in front of Aya.

"What are you talking about?" Aya asked.

"Umm… Just something my brother told me back in Nixtorm…" I thought I was going to explain, but at that moment a messenger bird Pokémon from my army flew in. _Thank Arceus! _I exclaimed in my head as I read the letter. Oichi had sent it saying that everyone was ready to head out to Chrysalia if I was. "I've got to leave now! Ask Nat later if you're curious! Say bye to Kenshin for me!" And with that I ran back to the castle with Glacier in my arms, as Kanetsugu shouted an honor rant from behind me. Something about how it was dishonorable to abandon your friend after saying a thing like that, but I didn't fully catch it. My mind was too focused on making it out without seeing Aya's reaction, whether or not it was bad, to what Kanetsugu now had to explain.

* * *

The three day ride back to Violight was, thankfully, as uneventful as the ride there. As soon as I arrived back at the castle I was greeted by Oichi and Nagamasa, who led me to Violight's meeting room where the rest of the group was. The first thing that came to my attention was the two newcomers. Nobuchika and Morichika had apparently joined our group in my absence. I was completely fine with it though and glad to have some extra help in the coming battles.

After that came the next item on our list of things to take care of. We had all the warriors in our army gathered here to decide who would go where. I decided based on the Bug-type Pokémon found in Chrysalia, that myself, Kanbei, Oichi, Morichika, Muneshige, and a reluctant Rikyu, would be heading into battle. Ginchiyo and Sōrin were to be left in charge of Violight, Hanbei Motoharu and Nobuchika were looking after Ignis, and the final team of Nagamasa Takakage and Takamoto were to defend Fontaine. The different groups then quickly headed to where they were supposed to be, while my attacking group went to our Ponyta to begin the ride to Chrysalia.

* * *

The route was normally two days on foot but as usual the Ponyta cut the time in half to one day. However, it was midday when we left so we'd still have to take a break for the night. Unlike usual our ride didn't go as smoothly.

The road to Chrysalia led directly through a Bug-type infested forest, and apparently a few of them were somewhat territorial. The first encounter was with a group of Sewaddle and Swadloon which were defeated by Kanbei's Lampent. The second was swarm of Beedrill Which Muneshige sent away with a Whirlwind attack. Then an hour later Kanbei said for us to stop, which gave me serious feeling of déjà vu. I moved my head slightly to the side to get a different angle at the path ahead, and the sunlight revealed the thin strands of a web. An Ariados with a scar near its eye that looked like it was from a well-placed sharp attack landed down a few seconds later, and glacier fell into a defensive stance and began growling. _It can't be… _I thought.

As if able to read my thoughts Rikyu spoke up very quietly. "It's the same one."

_Aw great… _"Well then Ta why don't you use an Ember to-" I was quickly cut off from what I was about to say by sharp cry from Glacier.

"Nya I have a score to settle with this. Let me do it!" I shook my head, but nonetheless agree to my crazy partner's request. She'd just complain or sulk if I said no, so I figured why not at that point.

Glacier's tactics were different than usual. She was letting Ariados attack, as she quickly moved just slightly to the side to avoid each hit. Her attacks were only occasional and seemed to only serve the purpose of scaring Ariados. Her incredibly random tactics made no sense at first but then Ariados began to grow more tired while she had most of her strength. Finally she just smiled and fired off her most powerful attack, an Ice Beam. The beam of ice energy hit with incredible accuracy swiftly defeating Ariados. Glacier walked over to make sure it was completely knocked out, and then began gloating a little. I just shook my head and told Ta to burn the web to clear a path, which caused Glacier to scurry back over.

"Not so brave around fire are you?" I said smiling. She just closed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at me which only made me laugh.

After that craziness it was getting close to nightfall. We walked down a side path to a large clearing and set up camp there. Unlike on most of our other trips we decided to take watches throughout the night I case of other Bug Pokémon attacks, which hopefully wouldn't happen.

* * *

In the morning we discovered that the watches were unneeded, and the rest of our ride into Chrysalia was eventful. We all thanked Arceus for that. More challenges were not needed if we were going to challenge Yoshimoto. Despite what I've heard it's still best to never underestimate an opponent.

As we came upon the castle town we left our Ponyta in a field outside, and checked our supplies. After making sure everything was in order, we headed down the road through the town to the castle. Chrysalia was a very cheerful and prosperous place that seemed untouched by any forms of war and conflict. I honestly almost felt a little guilty about challenging this place, but if I were to unite the land it was necessary.

Just as we hit the end of the road, a loud surprised shout was heard from the inside of the castle. A small shadow fell over our group and a ball flew down at rapid speed towards us. Glacier immediately jumped up and hit the ball back over the gates of the castle. This was already looking… for lack of a better word… Interesting.

"Let's go." I said as somewhat cautiously as we walked in.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-One  
The Strangest Challenge

We walked into a large courtyard with a large map table in one of the corners. The courtyard was comprised of a soft grassy floor and cobblestone paths running through it. In the center was a strange looking man bouncing a kemari ball back and forth with a Pineco. An old man in purple robes who standing nearby noticed us and turned to get the other man's attention.

"Lord Yoshimoto." He said calmly.

The man who we now knew to be the Lord of Chrysalia, Yoshimoto, either couldn't hear him or was completely oblivious. "Ohh! Pokémari is just glorious fun! And little Pineco just gets more adorable every day! Ohh!" _Oh great Arceus… _I thought. _This is Yoshimoto?_

The old man just sighed then shouted. "LORD YOSHIMOTO!"

Yoshimoto jumped in surprise. "OHH! Yes Sessai?"

The old man, Sessai, just sighed again. "Lord Yoshimoto, someone has come to challenge you to battle! Your opponent is too be Nya!"

Yoshimoto tilted his head to the side questioningly. "Is that the one who's been expanding his territory in the east?"

"No that would be Nobunaga." Sessai said but was ignored.

"Or the other one?" Yoshimoto continued his earlier thought.

"Yes the other one is Nya…" Replied Sessai only to be ignored once again.

"Ohh, it doesn't matter. As long as they play Pokémari with me I don't care who they are!"

Sessai sighed for the third time. "Lord Yoshimoto…"

"Come Nya! To the battlefield! Where we can play Pokémari to our heart's content!" And with that he happily walked off to the battlefield laughing in joy.

Sessai turned to my group. "Please forgive my lord, he's a bit…"

"Odd?" Kanbei offered.

"For lack of a better word yes." After that we followed Sessai to the battlefield for what was almost certainly going to be our strangest challenge yet.

* * *

Chrysalia's battlefield consisted of a large span of grass with two ponds. Within the ponds were large stepping stones so non-water-type Pokémon and they partners could cross. In the center of the field was a large cobblestone square, and within that were several extra-large kemari balls and rocks. Next to the square was a sōzu, which made a sound as it filled with water, fell, and hit the rock dish below.

On Yoshimoto's team there were several warriors. Sessai, who had a Volcarona and wielded a tessen in battle. Standing next to him was a warrior named Ujichika who had a Swadloon at his side and a metal staff held tightly in his hands. Standing on the other side of Sessai was Yasumoto who had a yari in his hand, and a Galvantula at his side. In the back a warrior called Masatsuna stood with an arrow knocked and drawn as a Beedrill hovered near him. Finally, at the head of these warriors stood Yoshimoto with a sword in one hand, a kemari ball in the other, and Pineco right beside him. "This battlefield has been designed so that we might enjoy Pokémari as we fight!" Yoshimoto happily announced. From what I had heard Pokémari was basically kemari but with larger balls so that Pokémon could play as well. "Come, come! Let us begin, without farther ado!"

I just sighed and looked back at the rest of my group. "You all remember the plan." They nodded. "Good. I really don't feel like giving the traditional battle cry today so let's just cut to the chase and get this over with."

We all quickly charge into battle. Morichika went towards Sessai, Muneshige went after Ujichika, Kanbei being our best distance fighter went to battle against Masatsuna, Oichi with Dratini at her side this time around challenged Yasumoto, and I went against Yoshimoto, with Rikyu and Darumaka fighting alongside me.

Honestly judging by Yoshimoto's personality, I thought this was going to be easy, but he was stronger than he first appeared. He was able to block both my sword strikes with ease along with the strikes from Rikyu's shakujo. His cheerful personality was also a little disarming and he almost managed to get a strike or two past our guard. His Pineco was actually not half-bad as well, but it really didn't have the same stubborn determination of my partner. However things got really strange when Yoshimoto cheerfully laughed and threw a kemari ball.

"Lady Nya look out!" Rikyu called as he hit the ball back with his shakujo. This didn't work how it should normally though, because on contact it exploded sending both of us falling backward. We were both still on the ground when Rikyu timidly said, "His kemari balls explode?"

I shook my head in disbelief. "Welcome to the kingdom of weirdness…" I said as I got up. I held out a hand to Rikyu and helped him up as he accepted it. "All right now that we know that, let's not try that again and hope that Glacier and Darumaka can wrap this up soon!" Rikyu nodded, as we semi-cautiously headed back into battle.

After several minutes we had finally defeated Yoshimoto. The only one still in battle was Oichi, whose Dratini had recently been paralyzed by Galvantula's attack, and was unable to move. Rikyu quickly muttered something and light glowed from his staff. The same light surrounded Dratini, and as it faded she was able to move again. The battle was swiftly finished after that with a well-timed Dragon Rage attack.

"Thank Arceus we won!" Glacier just nodded in agreement to my abnormal victory quote.

* * *

After that insanity was over we gathered at the courtyard where the whole thing started. Yoshimoto seemed honestly disappointed by the end of the battle, and had a reaction completely the opposite to that of Glacier and myself. "Ohh, so the battle's over. No more fun…" Glacier upon hearing this gave me a look that said he's nuts! Apparently she does not fear the Demon King but is freaked out by Yoshimoto. This was something I would have to remember.

"Lord Yoshimoto, you must understand." Sessai began to say. "As a result of losing this battle, you are no longer the warlord of Chrysalia."

"Ohh?" Yoshimoto asked seemly oblivious to the words. Then it apparently clicked. "OHHHH!"

Sessai just cleared his throat and sighed once again. "The kingdom is yours Nya, rule it well." And with that the warriors of Chrysalia left, aside from Ujichika who had joined our group.

After this battle we decided to head back to Aurora for a bit to regroup and prepare what the biggest challenge of that triangle of kingdoms. The battle at Pugilis.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-Two  
Regroup and Attack

The warriors of my army all gathered in Aurora for a period of two days to take a break before we challenged Pugilis. Both Glacier and I were in agreement that this was going to be one of the most difficult challenges we would face. In fact surprisingly Glacier was starting to sound more reasonable. Occasionally she would slip into her usual ways, but lately she was beginning to see the difficult challenges that should not be taken head-on. A tiny part of me was starting to think that she was gaining some common sense, but mostly I knew it was because she didn't want face another defeat like the one she faced at the hands of Aya. It also didn't surprise me that she was training, while the rest of us were relaxing. Well, I should say most of us. Ginchiyo was sparing with a reluctant Muneshige while her Luxio had become Glacier's training partner.

The rest of us were just doing the things we usually do. Oichi and Nagamasa were sitting beneath a wisteria tree talking. Kanbei was playing a game of chess with Takakage while his brothers watched. Rikyu was sitting with a pot of tea and a large stack of books. Hanbei was napping in a sunbeam that filtered down through the leaves of the tree above him. Morichika and Nobuchika practiced their flute and harp respectively, while Sōrin and their Pokémon quietly listened. And I of course was sketching things. The drawing topic of choice that came into my head was Nixtorm, and so I drew a picture of a snowball fight my Karu and I had had shortly after I linked with Glacier. She was an Eevee then and was fighting on my side defending our snow castle, while Karu and Piplup defended theirs. Back then war was just a simple thing involving lobbing snowballs, and the rare iceball at each other. Just friendly competition. It still amazes me how much one event can change things.

I was soon snapped out of my thoughts and daydreams by a voice behind me. ""Hey Nya, what are you drawing?"

I jumped and turned around to see Oichi and Nagamasa standing behind me. "Gah! Don't do that! Another friend of mine used to do that all the time, and it's the one thing I don't miss about him!" As soon as I had relaxed once again I answered Oichi's question. "It's just a fond memory from home. One of the many snowball fights I used to have all the time with my brother."

"Sounds interesting." Said Nagamasa, which only made me laugh.

"Interesting is not the word I would use. Insanity or chaos maybe, but not interesting. Our Pokémon would help us out too so craziness would always happen due to the fact that they were both full of pride, and in charge of making the snowballs. Occasionally one of us would hold it up and get ready to throw only to find out that it had become an iceball or rocks put inside, too late to give it back to them and ask for a new one. For Glacier and Piplup snowballs fights were war and chaos." I sighed then smiled. "But they were fun nonetheless!"

Oichi laughed. "Now you're starting to sound like Glacier!"

"When you live around a semi-psychotic Glaceon, she starts to rub off on you!"

"Heard that!" Glacier called out narrowly dodging a Thunderbolt from Luxio. She immediately fired a Shadow Ball that was blocked by a Spark. Then Luxio charged straight in with a Bite attack, which Glacier avoided and countered with a Tackle. They had been at that battle all morning and still neither of them made any ground against each other. Glacier just seemed happy to have someone in our group that fought similarly to her, since she was smiling the whole time. Luxio was also just as stubborn as his partner, who was equal in stubbornness to Glacier. This was the only explanation I could find to the battle lasting this long. Neither of them would admit defeat. However since it was becoming close to mid-day I knew there was one way to make them stop.

"Hey Glacier, you ready for lunch?" Glacier glanced up and gave me a look that said that she wasn't hungry, but her growling stomach betrayed her, and she nodded looking kind of embarrassed. I laughed at her as the two of us walked off, which only got me a glare from her. This did not help my laughing however, so she walked slightly ahead and chatted to Hoshi, who was currently flying next to her.

* * *

The rest of the time spent resting went pretty much the same way as the first morning. We all kind of went off on our own until the next morning of the last day. That was the morning we began our plans for Pugilis.

Pugilis was a Fighting-type kingdom, meaning that our normal and Ice-type Pokémon wouldn't do so well. Frighteningly enough our best chances of victory were with Muneshige's Staravia, with her being a Flying-type. On top that it was decide that Oichi would come simply to stand back and heal us when it was absolutely necessary, those actually battling would be Hanbei, Kanbei, and Takakage, and I would be leading the attack. Everyone else was to divide themselves up with at least one warrior in each kingdom. And with that we all began to head off to our places.

* * *

The ride to Pugilis had to be the most uneventful and boring out of all of our treks and when we arrived we immediately challenged Yoshihiro.

"Nya! I've been waiting for you." Yoshihiro called out as we walked over. He had an over-confident and somewhat creepy grin on his face. We all were surprised and a little thrown off by this. None of the other warlords we had faced had ever reacted this way.

"Wa- waitng?" Oichi stammered. "What do you-"

Before she could finish her sentence she was cut off by Yoshihiro. "The so-called 'warlords' of this area are pathetic weaklings." I heard Muneshige mutter something about it being a good thing that Ginchiyo hadn't come. "Invading their kingdoms would be no fun at all. Something does seem to be kicking off in the north… But that's still far away." _Yeah, that and you'd have to get past lord Kenshin and Shingen probably as well! _I thought just before Yoshihiro continued his long speech. "And now you're here. I think this could end up being the most fun I've had in years!"

As Yoshihiro walked off to the battlefield Kanbei sighed and Hanbei facepalmed. I glanced over at Oichi who only shrugged. I turned back, sighed, and followed Yoshihiro to the battlefield.

* * *

Pugilis' battlefield was designed like a giant arena, with a surrounding area, a pit and an island with four banners in the center. The goal was to keep all four banners under your control for a total of five turns, or defeat all your enemies. The five warriors across from us were rather, interesting, for lack of a better word. They were the same as any other warriors we'd ever fought so that wasn't too unusual, it was their weapons that were odd. The two warriors who had Croagunks at their side were using straight bladed swords that I had never seen before. The one with a Machop used a weapon that reminded me of Motonari's gauntlet only you hold this one in your hand instead of attached to your wrist. A warrior with a Timburr used a weapon that looked like an axe on a long pole. And Yoshihiro had a huge war hammer. No doubt this would be an interesting battle. "Okay all of you, let's try our best and show them what we're made of!"

* * *

I'll just sum up this attempt in three words… We. Got. Thumped. This was our first major defeat and my group all looked rather down, but Yoshihiro seemed more upset by the outcome than any of us.

"I like it when the odds are against me, but you have to overcome those odds or it's no fun. Come back again when you've gotten stronger."

And with that we all retreated back to Chrysalia to plan our counterattack after on night of rest.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty-Three  
New Allies

As the four of us (Hanbei, Kanbei, Oichi, and myself) Stared at a strategy map that morning, a messenger ran in.

"Lady Nya! There's someone here to see you!" I gave a simple nod in reply. "Very well, send them in."

I did not expect the two people to walk in to ever show up at this moment or any for that matter, but in they came. Through the sliding doors came Motonari and Motochika. We were all surprised to see them both, except Kanbei, but I was sure that nothing surprised him.

Motonari scratched the back of his head in his usual nervous habit as he began to speak. "Ah, Nya. I'm sorry to turn up out of the blue like this, but we'd like to ask a favor. I know I said earlier that I don't want to get any farther involved in the conflicts, but all the Pokémon really seem to take a shine to you. Ahhh, what I'm trying to say is, I'd like to join your army. Motochika here feels the same. His reasons are different though."

Motochika nodded in response to Motonari's statement, and played a few notes on his shamisen. "Nya, I've seen you fight. You're good. Ransei is under threat from a great dark wave. I want to witness your rise against it. First hand."

The Pokémon at their sides, a Chingling, Dewott, Ralts, and Servine, seemed to think the same way, as they all nodded with a determined look on their faces. I smile as I replied that we would be happy to have them come along on our quest,, and that their help would be greatly appreciated.

"Lady Nya this is great!" Oichi said cheerfully. "With Motonari and Motochika on our side we might just stand a chance against Yoshihiro now!"

"Don't count your Torchic before they hatch." Hanbei stated.

Kanbei nodded in agreement to his friend's statement. "Indeed. We should still figure out how we all can cooperate and come with a strategy based on the battlefield this time around."

Glacier groaned in annoyance at the word strategy. I was kind of with her on that this time around for once in our lives. I just wanted to get that rematch done and over with as soon as possible, but we couldn't accomplish that without a decent plan. Seeing as we had the whole day ahead of us, we might as well start training and planning as soon as possible. "Alright Kanbei, Hanbei, I'll trust your judgment. Let's head out to the courtyard for training."

* * *

The mock battle was to take place with two teams. The first was made up of me with Glacier, Hanbei with Pikachu, Motonari with Ralts, Kanbei with Lampent, Oichi with Dratini, and Motochika with Chingling. We had called a second team consisting of Ginchiyo with Luxio, Muneshige with Staravia, Takakage with Grovyle, Morichika with Oshawott, Ujichika with Swadloon, and Nagamasa with Escavalier. Each team's warriors would use wooden or weakened weapons in the case of the magic users. The rules of this would be exactly the same of those as the rules at Pugilis' battlefield. The first teams to hold the banners for a total of five turns or defeat all their enemies would be deemed the winners. The whole point of this battle was to assess our attacking group's strengths and weaknesses, so it didn't really matter who won or lost, however both teams would still give it their all. As soon as everyone signaled that the y were ready, Rikyu, who we had called in to referee the battle, gave the signal of "Let the battle begin!"

"All right Oichi, stay back until the time is right. Motochika, Kanbei, move forward. Motonari, follow behind them. Hanbei Stay back, plan, and guard Oichi. Glacier, we'll head around to the back. Move onward when you're ready."

The five of them nodded in agreement as Ginchiyo's team, who had finished what little planning they had made charged forward. Takakage, Morichika, Muneshige, Ujichika, and Nagamasa all moved towards the banners, while Ginchiyo went around to intercept Glacier and I. Motochika, Kanbei and Motonari quickly moved towards to go after the banners in the middle which could only end up in a Kotaro pleasing chaos, while Hanbei stayed with Oichi just as planned. As Ginchiyo and Luxio charged and us however Glacier maintained an unnatural calm. While normally you'd think this would make me happy, it only served to creep me out. After her battle against Aya in Illusio, the time she became calm like this was when she genuinely wanted to thump someone. Apparently she hated that Luxio more than I thought.

As Ginchiyo made it over and slashed at me with her sword, I raised my two to block it with a loud thud. Glacier had begun to launch a series of well-timed Shadow Balls at Luxio which for dodged for the most part except for the occasional hit. Amidst all of this I heard a shout from Rikyu. "Nagamasa is out!" I glanced over and saw that Escavalier had been taken out by an attack from Lampent. _Good. That's one down._ I thought making a rapid double-attack towards Ginchiyo which she jumped back to avoid. Glacier at this point narrowly dodged a Spark attack from Luxio. Soon amidst the battle I heard wings flapping above me. I looked up for a brief moment and saw Muneshige's Staravia flying to where Hanbei and Oichi were standing. _Alright you two. Now's your chance!_

"Dratini, Dragon Rage!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

The Dragon Rage struck first weakening Staravia, and the Thunderbolt hit a moment later knocking her down out of the sky in defeat. Muneshige quickly caught his partner before she hit the ground and gave her a reassuring pat on the head. "Muneshige is out!" Rikyu called out.

"Great job you two! Excellent teamwork!" I called out to Oichi and Hanbei. I saw them give a quick nod in reply before I had to turn back to my fight with Ginchiyo. I blocked her attack with one sword and moved to strike with the other, which caused Ginchiyo to sidestep in response. She then retaliated with a high strike that would've been difficult to avoid without Rikyu's call. "Ginchiyo is out!" We were both shocked by this, but when we looked over at our partners we were less surprised. Glacier had used a blizzard attack to make a Luxiocicle out of Luxio. From where we were standing I asked Kanbei to fire a weak Ember to thaw the ice. As Ginchiyo walked off with her partner I looked over at Glacier. "You know, there is such a thing as over-kill. Just saying!"

Glacier looked horrified, but in a slightly joking tone replied back. "How could my own partner say such a thing!?" She then smiled and leapt up on to my shoulder as Rikyu called out, "Nya's team have held the banners for the five turn time-limit! The victory goes to them!"

My team quickly came over to where Glacier and I were standing. "So do you two have a plan now?" I asked both Hanbei and Kanbei.

Both of them nodded. "We have an idea of what will work." Kanbei stated.

"But we're going to look it over with Motonari later!" Hanbei added.

"We should be able to leave for Pugilis tomorrow however." Motonari finished.

I nodded, while Glacier had a smile that practically said "Revenge time!" Tomorrow we had to win this! It wouldn't be too great if we could never accomplish our goal simply because we couldn't get past one hurdle. So even if we didn't win, we would eventually overcome it no matter what! Eventually…


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-Four  
Rematch

We walked into the strategy room to find Motonari, Hanbei, and Kanbei sitting in front of the map of Pugilis' battlefield. Kanbei appeared indifferent as usual, Hanbei looked more sleepy than usual, and Motonari looked honestly wide awake. (I assumed this was due to the teacup full of tea and the rather large teapot next to him.) Their Pokémon were lying on the ground in blissful sleep, except for Lampent who floated above her partner's head. I wan't entirely sure if they had even gotten any sleep last night so I made the foolish decision of asking.

"Did you three even head off to your rooms last night?"

The three of them looked up from the map. Motonari glanced out the window, and then gently scratched the back of his head with his hand. I had recently come to the conclution that this was a nervous habit of his. "Oh, what do you know? It's morning."

Hanbei's eyes widened slightly, then returned to normal. "You mean I missed a whole night of sleep?" Kanbei looked about ready to facepalm at this. Hanbei brightened up a mere second earlier however, after his initial complaint. "Oh well, I'll just take a nap on the way over! Come on Pikachu!" He called as the yellow mouse Pokémon jumped up on his shoulder. I was almost scared to ask the next question.

"How-?" Motonari Oichi and I all said at the same time, but we cut off by Kanbei who held up a hand to stop us from asking. "Just don't." And with that, the rest of us headed off to the stables to prepare to head out.

* * *

The ride to our second challenge at Pugilis was oddly peaceful. Motochika was playing his shamisen while Oichi sang quietly to herself a song in tune to the stringed instrument. Motonari was reading a rather large tome that he'd grabbed from his small collection that he carried with him that morning. Kanbei and I were both pretty silent, though he was probably thinking about the coming battle and I was admiring the scenery. As for Hanbei, he was taking a nap while managing to stay on his Ponyta's back. The guy seriously had a gift for napping. However, I had to admit this was almost the perfect day for it. It was currently mid-April, and a gentle spring breeze was blowing through. Combine this with the peaceful sound of Motochika's shamisen, and Oichi's lullaby-like singing, and you had a perfect combination for a nap.

Honestly though I wasn't sure how he could sleep right now of all times. Sure none of our strategists had gotten any sleep last night, but the forest path that we were walking through was so beautiful I almost didn't want to blink in fear that it would all go away. The trees around us were in full bloom and the petals were falling like a gentle snow around us. In a way, it was strange to see such a precious and beautiful sight before heading into battle, but in another way it was fitting. Ay had once told Kanetsugu and I that the transient life of the spring blossoms was similar to that of a warriors. Back then I had always thought that was a rather morbid explanation of such a beautiful thing, but I was beginning to realize what she was telling us. Life is short so make it a beautiful and worthwhile experience. Make the most of these precious moments before they're gone.

I must have been lost in thought for quite a long time, because we soon crossed over the border of Chrysalia into Pugilis, and left the forest for a vast and boring grassland. I reached into the saddlebag next to me and pulled out my small journal. I had to something to keep my mind occupied for the rest of journey, and composing haiku seemed to be the best choice at the moment.

* * *

When we finally arrived back in Pugilis our group immediately went back to challenge Yoshihiro once again. Same as the first time, he was smiling as we walked over. "Oh! Back again are you? And after such a crushing defeat last time…" Glacier looked about ready to attack him right then and there. I gave her look however, and she backed down just a little. "Still I'm glad to see you!" Yoshihiro finished as we walked off towards the battlefield.

* * *

The rules were the same as last time, and our stating places and opponents were as well. With our well planned strategy, all of us were pretty sure of a victory. I only hoped this victory would come, otherwise our poor strategists accidental all-nighter would be in vain. "All right everybody, let's show them what we're made of!"

Quickly, just as in the practice, Kanbei, Motonari, and Motochika made their way to begin capturing the banners alongside Lampent, Ralts, and Chingling. Oichi stayed back unless it was completely necessary with a determined-looking Dratini at her side as well as Hanbei and Pikachu, who were ready to help if needed. As for Glacier and I, being the idiots that we are, we went straight for Yoshihiro around the area above the pit leading to the center. Glacier was ready to go, but I was beginning to question her logic. That giant hammer looked like it'd be pretty painful when it hits, and I still had no idea how to counter it. A block certainly seemed like a poor plan, so it would likely end up being a dodge-and-strike tactic moment.

My thinking time decreased as the hammer fell towards me. Instinctively I dodged as Glacier countered one of Gurrdurr's attacks with a dodge and then a swiftly fired Shadow Ball. Yoshihiro paused his attacks towards me and gestured to where my group was fighting against his four warriors. "The banners are at the rings edge where you can fall by a simple attack, you know what this means, don't you?" Without waiting for the reply he was never going to get, Yoshihiro continued. "It's a gamble! Just like everything else in life!" I groaned in annoyance, and likely would've facepalmed if we weren't on the battlefield. _This guy is nuts! _I thought as I dodged another attack.

Glacier seemed to be having a somewhat easier time then me. She had the look of focus that was starting to creep me out at this point in time, and was dodging and striking back as easily as if she were fighting a Flying-type. She was also avoiding her typical tactic of getting close and was using ranged attacks, like Shadow Ball and Ice Beam instead of Bite and Tackle. I couldn't look for two long because I had to quickly avoid yet another attack. After the dodge I struck back with my swords only to have Yoshihiro block the hit with the handle of his hammer. The force of simply the block sent me stumbling backwards a bit. _Note to self: Don't attack, don't block, just hold out until all the banners are captured._

Apparently we were honestly doing worse than I thought, because I head a soft song from Oichi, and a golden light fall over the members of our team as their health increased. With that I glanced over to see that two of the banners were ours, and half of Yoshihiro's warriors had been defeated.

"Looks like I'm at a slight disadvantage." Yoshihiro said as he looked over at the center as well. "But it wouldn't be any fun if the odds were completely in my favor! Not knowing whether you're going to win or lose… That's the thrill of the battlefield!"

"You're right! He's nuts!" Glacier shouted before fireing a quick series of three rapid Shadow Balls. "That's what I keep telling you…" I muttered. Luckily for our group, it wasn't long before we had successfully captured all five banners and held them for as long as we had to. I quickly fell to my knees in exhaustion. "Victory is ours." I said half delirious, raising a fist into the air. Glacier walked over and fell down right next to me. "Thank Arceus!" Was all my partner could say.

* * *

In the aftermath of the battle, everyone from Pugilis joined our group. I was currently leaning against Ta as we listened to Yoshihiro's end-of-battle speech.

"Phew. You are a worthy winner. But this is all part of the rich tapestry of battle. Victory tastes all the sweeter once you know the bitterness of defeat. Anyway, congratulations. You have won a battle that will be talked about for years to come.

* * *

Later that day we invited everyone back to Pugilis for a victory celebration. It seemed fitting since we'd just gone through the most insane triangle of kingdoms tha we could possible find in Ransei! (Glacier and I's opinion, nobody else agrees…) I the middle of the celebration Oichi and Nagamasa got up from the spot where they were sitting and came over to talk to me.

"Congratulations for gaining seven kingdoms now!" Oichi said cheerfully.

"Do you know what your plans for the upcoming events are?" Asked Nagamasa.

I had a vague idea of what was to come, but I hadn't really been thinking too hard on it as of yet. "Well-"

Before I could say anything, I was interrupted by a voice from behind the three of us. "Are always this pleased with yourselves? Surely you are aware of the crisis facing Ransei as we speak."

The three of us quickly turned around to see Mitsunari, Kiyomasa, and Masanori standing behind us with their Pokémon at their sides. "Oh hey, if it isn't the three fools. Long time no see!" Glacier smiled and nodded.

"Hey! We're not fools!" Masanori shouted to which Mitsunari simply replied, "Shut up fool!" The two of them began fighting with each other while Kiyomasa's Fraxure made an attempt to break the two of them up. Kiyomasa sighed and made an attempt to finish what they were all trying to say.

"Nobunaga has captured all eight of the eastern kingdoms at this point. The two that remain are the central kingdoms of Illusio and Terrera. Kenshin and Shingen are two of the most powerful warlords in Ransei, so this brings the question of what would happen if Nobunaga were to gain control of these kingdoms?"

Mitsunari and Masanori stopped trying to kill each other at this point. "Th-that would be terrible!" Masanori shouted once again. This seemed to be the only volume he was able to talk at. "Nobody would be able to stop him then!"

"So do I have to spell it out for you?" Mitsunari asked, but continued without any hesitation. Even when he saw that I was going to answer. "I guess I do. Nya, you've got to get Kenshin and Shingen on your side. There are no other options."

And with that the three of them left. This meant tomorrow planning would begin. Lots and lots of planning…


	25. Chapter 25

All right! I finally got this chapter finished! I'm alternating chapter updates between this story and The New Legends, because a certain friend of mine keeps asking for updates on the other one, so expect slower updates. Also expect updates to slow down a little since I might end up reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms (really good book) rather than write for a while, but I will keep up with my writing nonetheless!

Either way to all my readers, enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Chapter Twenty-five  
Turn Back

At the start of the day after the victory party, all of the warriors in my army gathered to decide what was to happen next. We stood in front of the map table and the book that Motonari and Takakage had brought back from Greenleaf containing info on the seventeen kingdoms. Both Kenshin and Shingen were powerful warlords who led equally powerful armies, so no matter which kingdom we chose, it would be a difficult fight. However, the terrain of the battlefield and the possible routes we could make would be what made the difference here.

As I knew from my time spent there, Illusio's battlefield was the most complex of the two. Made up of floating crystals, moving platforms, and portals that changed their connections every few turns made this a rather difficult place to play capture the flag within. The other problem was, as always, the Uesugi siblings. Fighting Kenshin and Aya on the same battlefield was not a pleasant experience. Of course, no battle was, but this was more so than others.

The battlefield of Terrera was easier in some ways and more difficult in others. The battle setup was still a game of capture the flag, but instead of the hard to navigate battlefield Illusio contained, Terrera's was simply a desert oasis with three towers that held the flags at their peak. The only way you could get to them was to use one of the lifts to go to the top. Simple, right? No, that would be wrong. It's not as simple as one would think. Sometimes after reaching the top, a strong gust of the desert winds can knock your Pokémon off from the top of the tower all the way back to the bottom, leaving another Pokémon the ability to go use the lift to get to the banner.

After much discussion on these points it was decided that we would first take on Shingen, and then go after Kenshin in Illusio. The next step after that was to decide our team of warriors who would battle there. After some more discussion, it was decided that myself, Oichi, Hanbei, Motochika, Motonari, and Yoshihiro would be challenging Shingen. I wouldn't put it pat my old mentor to launch an attack on us, so I put Nagamasa and Kanbei in charge of Chrysalia's defense along with Takakage, Ujichika, Nobuchika, and Rikyu. Everyone else was free to disperse themselves throughout our captured kingdoms as they pleased, so long as there was at least one warrior in each kingdom. Since everything was decided, I dismissed everyone to their tasks and began preparations for our attack.

* * *

The ride to Terrera would have been a day or two on foot, but riding at top speed on the backs of Ponyta made the journey only half a day. This time span would allow us to likely arrive and finish the battle before nightfall at best. Sadly, this plan did not go as well as we thought it might, for we were met with a startling surprise when we arrived.

"Well, well, if it isn't Nya." Shingen said as we walked over to where he was standing outside the castle gates. "What brings you here today?"

"We wish to challenge you to battle," I said with absolutely no lack of conviction in my voice.

This only made Shingen laugh. "You wish to challenge me?" He said in between a bit of laughter, which was still going on as he continued to speak. "You!? Challenging me!? Oh, very amusing! Very amusing indeed!"

Oichi stepped forward with an outraged look on her face. "Lady Nya is serious!"

Shingen looked not even the least bit ashamed when he stopped laughing. Well, maybe he was a little but it was hardly noticeable. "Oh, yes, of course. I'm sorry. It's just the thought of it…" Shingen broke off from his sentence, pausing for a few brief moments, and then continued. "I don't doubt your skill, especially since I've seen you first hand back when you were Kenshin's apprentice, but I don't think that you're a match for me at the moment, Nya. Though there is one here…" He half mumbled this last part as his voice trailed off.

I had a feeling I knew who he was talking about, but I still asked the question of who it was anyway. Shingen seemed slightly surprised that I had either been listening or just heard him. 'Uh… Never mind. Come back once you've gotten stronger, all right Nya?"

And with that we headed back to Pugilis.

* * *

The next morning we began to create training plans and other important strategies and tasks that would help us in challenging Shingen. We had called Kanbei back to Pugilis for these plans, and we sent Yoshihiro to help with Chrysalia's defense. This whole conversation was mainly started by a question and statement or two from Oichi.

"What are we going to do Lady Nya? While we waste our time here, Nobunaga is probably…" She trailed off at this part of her statement. We all knew what she was thinking though since we were thinking pretty much the same thing. "Perhaps we could challenge Illusio instead."

Hanbei shook his head. "Kenshin and Shingen are about equal in strength. The result would be the same." I nodded in agreement to Hanbei's statement and he began speaking once again. "Let's just- Hmm?"

The young-looking strategist was quickly cut off by a messenger who quickly ran in. "Lady Nya! Forces from Terrera have come to battle you!"

"Called it!" Hanbei cheered while Kanbei just shook his head.

"You didn't even say it." The older-looking strategist said.

"Called it my head then!" Hanbei said holding up his index finger and grinning in his "fact-is-I'm-a-genius" pose. Kanbei looked about ready to beat his head against the nearest wall. Hanbei simply continued with what he was saying. "Anyway, what shall we do, Lady Nya?"

I smiled, partially evilly, and partially just knowingly. "As Motonari would say, let's give our guests a cordial welcome!"

* * *

The four of us walked to the castle gate to greet our challengers. The leader of the group was a man about my age dressed in red and white armor with little hints of gold here and there who had a determined look on his face. The Charmeleon standing next to him looked just as serious, and certainly looked ready to take us on. Next to the man was a girl about the same age as him who was dressed in revealing black and red clothes. She had a red and gold scarf tied around her neck and a cheerful expression which she shared with the Sneasel on her shoulder. These two were Sanada Yukimura and his loyal ninja Kunoichi. The only other warriors they had brought with them were a man who looked almost like a younger Shingen, who was holding a yari and had a Pupitar next to him, and an older man with a Rhydon for a partner and a bow in his hands. _Sakon must have decided to sit this one out, probably at Shingen's request._

"Hey there, Kunoichi, Yukimura, long time no see!" I said as my group of four walked over to them.

"Hello Lady Nya. It's been a while." Yukimura replied in his normal formal fashion while Kunoichi responded with a completely un-formal, "Hiya Nya!"

"I'm assuming from what the messenger said you're here to challenge us?"

"Yukimura nodded. "Yes, we're here on Lord Shingen's orders. I believe it has something to do with that visit you paid to Terrera."

"Hmm, very well then." I turned to Hanbei and Kanbei. "Why don't you two sit this one out. Get Motonari and Motochika to come here, okay?"

Kanbei answered first this time. "That's fine."

"We'll go and get them!" Hanbei finished. He seemed pretty happy to get part of the day off this time. _I've got to remember to give my strategists a bit of a vacation when we get the chance. All three of them have been working really hard. _

"All right, we'll meet the other two on the battlefield when they get here, and we'll accept your challenge, Yukimura."

* * *

Motonari and Motochika had thankfully arrived quickly, and we made our plan of attack as well thought out yet not difficult to think of or pull off as possible. Instead of our little trick from the first battle when we tried to take Pugilis, all four of us would go after an individual banner in the center. Oichi would focus on capturing and defending the bottom right, Motochika would take the top left, Motonari was to defend the top right, and my job was to defend the bottom left banner. Motonari and Motochika with Servine and Dewott were our team's absolute best defenses against the primarily ground type group so it seemed like the smartest idea to put them in the front for a strong defense. The only problem was Kunoichi's Sneasel, which Servine may have some trouble against. We really didn't have much of a counter for that, so we would have to rely on Oichi's warrior skill and clever tricks. This honestly wouldn't be too much of a problem.

"Alright you guys, let's show them what we're made of!" And with that the battle began as both groups quickly charged forward.

Quickly we all attempted to make our way to banners we were supposed to defend. However Katsuyori, the man with the Pupitar, and Masatoyo, the man with the Rhydon managed to claim the front two banners before Motonari and Motochika could. The four of them were currently locked in battle against one another, while I had somehow ended up against Yukimura, and Oichi against Kunoichi. "Be careful, Glacier." I warned her. "You were an Eevee the last time we fought these two, but since you're an Ice-type now, don't do the same stupid stuff you did then." She simply gave me a look that I interpreted as, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Thanks, Captain Obvious!" Then she of course charged without a second's hesitation, while I quickly blocked a blow from Yukimura's yari with my twin swords.

From as far as I could tell the others seemed to be doing just fine. Motochika had managed to take the banner from Katsuyori, but Motonari's challenge seemed to be more difficult. Between Servine having to deal with Rhydon's defense levels, and both Motonari and Masatoyo dodging each other's arrow shots, it seemed like battle might take a while. Dewott eventually stepped in and helped with Rhydon though, while Motochika kept an eye on the banner. The combined Water and Grass-type moves began to whittle away at Rhydon's defenses far faster than the single attacks had been. This also increased when Motochika played a few notes on his shamisen and a red attack-boosting aura surrounded the two Pokémon. The second Rhydon was defeated; Kunoichi quickly shifted her focus from fighting Oichi to fighting Motonari, much to Oichi's relief.

After dodging and blocking many blows from Yukimura and retaliating with a few of my own, I glanced over at my partner to see how she was doing. Glacier was actually doing quite well, until three rapid-fire Ember attacks hit her all in a row. When she looked like she was about to be finished off at any moment, Charmeleon began readying an incredibly powerful attack. I quickly focused and sent a dark blue stream of energy from my sword to my partner, and gave her the necessary speed to dodge the oncoming Fire Blast. Oichi then sang a few gentle notes and a soft golden healing glow fell over our Pokémon. We had only a few minutes left to keep the banners safe before it could be called a victory, so we either had to hold on until then, or defeat Yukimura and Kunoichi.

"Jigglypuff, go give Glacier a hand," Oichi said gently as she sent off her partner. Jigglypuff sang a song that sounded like a calming lullaby, and Charmeleon fell asleep. The Fire Pokémon actually looked kind of embarrassed as its eyes slowly fell shut. "Thanks, Oichi!" I shouted, narrowly avoiding a quick slash from Yukimura's spear. I was incapable of avoiding the next attack, which was a tripping sweep from the spear's shaft. Servine had recently gone down despite the healing, and we'd almost lost the banner that Motonari was defending, but we were saved by the time limit needed to succeed.

"Victory is ours." I said actually less cheerfully than normal. Glacier, who looked exhausted, just gave a simple nod this time.

* * *

After the battle Yukimura and the others walked over. "Well done, Nya!" He said. "The way you worked together with both your Pokémon and allies was impressive. I shall have to try my best to match your standard." He bowed then turned and left to head back to Terrera with the rest of the group.

It was quiet amongst my group, even after Hanbei and Kanbei had joined us after the battle. That was when something weird happened. A silver glow appeared. At first I wasn't positive what it was, but when I saw the strange looks that both the other five and Glacier were giving me, I realized where it was coming from.

"Lady Nya?" Everyone asked surprised by the glow's appearance. Then it suddenly intensified to blinding levels. When it faded, everyone looked more shocked than they did when the glow had first appeared. I looked down and saw that my appearance had totally changed. My usual short pinkish-red cape was now longer and more pink in color than red. Both my skirt and sleeves had increased in length, and they had become a little frillier in appearance as well. My clothes had also gained more armor, which was a definite bonus, and my hair had become just slightly longer and slightly thicker, with more decorations on the spot that held it into its ponytail. The most amazing part, though, was the surge of newfound strength and power that I felt. The only word I could think to say was, "Whoa…"

"Nya… You look… What in the name of Arceus just happened!?" Was all Oichi could think to say.

"I remember hearing about this…" Motonari mumbled as he reached for a book that he currently kept in a small pack that he carried with him. Quickly he began to flip through the pages until he stopped on a particular section. "Ah! Here it is! Warrior Transformation. Much like Pokémon can evolve, warriors are capable of undergoing a transformation. Legend has it that when a warrior goes through such a metamorphosis like this, they become much stronger as well as being capable of linking with more Pokémon than before, and become able to form stronger bonds with certain ones. However, there are only a few recorded instances of this happening throughout Ransei's history."

Kanbei gained a thoughtful look as if he was scheming something. "Perhaps Shingen will now accept your challenge."

Hanbei shrugged. "It's worth a shot."

"He did say to return once you had gotten stronger," Motochika added.

I looked at Oichi, and she simply smiled and nodded in agreement to everyone's statements. Glacier looked completely ready, but that was nothing new. "Very well then. If you all think so, we'll head out the day after tomorrow for a re-challenge. Tomorrow we'll prepare some more for the match simply to make sure that we really are well and truly ready. All of you are dismissed."


	26. Chapter 26

The only thing I have to say is that one part of this chapter sets up the third story in this trilogy, so yes, the book will be back later.

That's all so enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Six  
We're Back!

The next morning was a beautiful and clear one. It didn't even feel like the most important battle that I was going to face as warlords was tomorrow. But of course it was. I quickly changed out of my sleepwear and into my normal outfit. Glacier and I then went to the kitchen and made ourselves a quick breakfast. Hoshi, who hadn't needed to perform his messenger duties for a while, ate with us. After that the three of us headed outside and walked to the Pugilis castle stables. I had already made a small pack of any items we would need tomorrow, so today was going to be simply a day to clear our minds and relax before the coming battle. I had recently heard in the marketplace that there was a peaceful oasis on the border between Pugilis and the forest path to Chrysalia. It was said that it was next to impossible to find, but it was also said that it contained an amazing secret. So of course Glacier and I, being the idiots we are, had to go and find it.

We quickly rode out on Ta, since we couldn't waste even a few moments. Glacier sat in front of me, and Hoshi, who had of course come along as well, sat atop my shoulder. Most people would certainly think us crazy for this, but we'd basically been chasing a legend all our lives just like the other warlords of this land. What was one more added to that list?

After several hours of riding, we reached the semi-tropical forests of the path to Chrysalia. I had Ta slow down so we could carefully inspect each little place. Having no idea what we were looking for, though, made things somewhat difficult. Eventually, Hoshi caught sight of a small statuette of Arceus, and alerted us to it. There was an arrow carved into it pointing due east. As we followed that arrow we came to another statuette with this one pointing north. I had no idea if these were what we were looking for, but our little group followed the several statuettes' arrows until we finally came to a temple-like place.

Inside the stone temple there were three murals surrounding a small yet tall dais. The first mural depicted what looked like three quadrupedal Pokémon standing in a triangle. One was brown and orange in color with a stocky build. The other was light green and pinkish with an elegant and almost feminine appearance. The third was teal and grey and reminded me of Kanetsugu in some ways. It looked like a being who simply wanted to uphold the honor in the world.

The next mural showed the group of three putting out fire and rescuing a little blue and cream colored quadruped. The final mural showed them standing together as one. The murals were amazing but my curiosity was diverted towards the box sitting atop the dais. After glancing at Glacier and receiving a nod, I walked over and opened it. Apparently neither one of us had heard the saying, "Curiosity killed the Meowth." Inside the box was an ancient looking book. The text inside was written in strange symbols unfamiliar to me. "We can bring it to Motonari," I said to Glacier. "I'm sure he'll love trying to translate it! Come on, let's head back!" I would not know until many years later, that as we left, a group for four Pokémon watched our departure.

* * *

We rode back into the castle stables about an hour after leaving the temple. Oichi ran over and for once she looked pretty annoyed with me. "Lady Nya, where have you been!? Hanbei, Kanbei and Motonari wanted to over the attack strategy one more time before we leave, but no one could find you!"

"Sorry…" I replied as I sheepishly scratched at the back of my head. "I got bored so I decided to go out for a ride." Oichi just gave a simple nod. Glacier was enjoying this far too much judging by her smile, as we followed Oichi back into the castle.

* * *

Our strategy for the attack tomorrow was simple, yet one that would end the battle quickly if we could pull it off. The meeting itself ended as soon as the three strategists had made sure that everyone completely understood what they were supposed to do. As everyone left, I quickly ran over to Motonari and handed him the book. "Just something I found and thought you might like." I said simply.

As he slowly looked through the pages, Motonari's eyes widened half in shock and half in interest. "This book is written in the Unown alphabet, the system the ancient people of Ransei used before kanji were invented. Where exactly did you find this?"

"Just in the middle of the woods between here and Chrysalia." From the look he gave me I could tell that he knew that I wasn't telling the whole truth. I quickly decided to ask a question of my own before he could question me farther. "Do you know how to read it?"

He gave a simple nod, not really looking up from the pages. I quietly took my leave at that point, seeing as I had the chance. I still wasn't sure why he was so concerned with where I found, it though. After all how dangerous could it be? I looked down and asked Glacier, who only shrugged. We both dropped the question at that point. However, we would both learn the answer to that question far later in life.

* * *

The next morning we rode out once again to Terrera. Once again the ride was calm, but this time we had a completely different result when we arrived.

"Nya! I heard about your challenge from Yukimura, and I've been waiting for your return." Shingen's greeting was stopped briefly as he glanced at our group. "Hmm? You look different, Nya. Well, well. I do think this battle is going to be interesting. Don't you, Yukimura?"

Yukimura, being Yukimura, simply replied, "Most definitely. If Lady Nya is our opponent, then I shall give it everything I have!"

Shingen just nodded in response to that, and then turned back to my group. "So, shall we begin?" And with that we all headed towards the battlefield.

* * *

On my side there were Hanbei and Pikachu, Oichi and Jigglypuff, Motonari and Servine, Kanbei and Lampent, Motochika and Dewott, and myself with Glacier. On Shingen's side there was him and his Rhyperior, Sakon with Mightyena, Yukimura and Charmeleon, Kunoichi and Sneasel, Katsuyori with Pupitar, and Masatoyo with Rhydon. Both of our groups were either fully prepared or certainly looked like they were.

Terrera's battlefield, that currently stood before us, was made up of a large desert oasis. There were small pools of crystal clear water here and there (which is very difficult to find in Terrera,) palm trees scattered throughout the area, and three large towers which were a dark almost blood red color with black designs. The towers were set up in a diagonal line with one in the lower left hand corner, one in the upper right, and the third residing smack dab in the center. The goal of the warriors and Pokémon on the field was to get to the top of each of these towers and claim all of the flags at the top of each.

"Aright everyone, you ready?" With the nods from everyone and their Pokémon, that was my signal. "Alright! Let's show them what we're made of!" The cry to begin the battle set our plan into motion. Hanbei and Kanbei teamed up and went for the lower left banner. Since that was the tower where attacks occurred, the least it seemed smart to send them both there due to the Pokémon's type match-ups. Motonari and Motochika's job was to claim the top left banner. This was the place where the most conflict would occur, and their Water and Grass type partners would shine. Then there was Oichi and I who were to go claim the center banner. This was the spot where a middle amount of conflict would be unleashed, however, if all went right with the plan, we could capture Terrera with very little fighting actually occurring.

Shingen's army moved forward to quickly claim their banners. Kunoichi had managed to make it to the top of the upper right tower, but at the moment that was nothing to worry about. Shingen was coming to where Oichi and I were standing, with Yukimura not too far behind, while Sakon headed to where Hanbei and Kanbei were and the lower left tower. Katsuyori and Masatoyo were both heading into the chaos that was the area between the upper right and center towers.

I quickly moved forward to attack and hopefully distract Shingen a little bit with a rapid swordstrike. He raised the iron signaling fan in his hand, though, and easily blocked it as Glacier dodged a Rock Blast from Rhyperior and a Flamethrower from Charmeleon. "A tower like this in the middle of the desert; does it surprise you?"

I smiled. "You know, I have been here before once or twice."

Shingen smiled back. "I suppose it wouldn't, then. As you should also know they are the tallest buildings in all of Ransei; even the strongest and most powerful of Flying-types would struggle to make it to the top."

"Of course I'm well aware of that as well. But with a well thought out plan success is possible even in the most difficult of situations. At least, that's what I learned back when I was Kenshin's apprentice!" Shingen simply nodded at this point and struck with his fan which I quickly blocked.

At this moment a strong wind blew through, knocking Kunoichi and her Sneasel from the top of the bottom left tower that they were currently on top of. That first strong wind was the signal to everyone to begin the execution of our plan. Quickly, Oichi, Hanbei, and Motochika climbed the lifts to the tops of the towers that they were assigned to capture. Within moments we had captured the banner from the tops of each of these towers. "Victory is ours!" I shouted while Glacier leapt onto my shoulder with a confident grin, and everyone from Terrera just stared at my group with surprised looks. Well, almost everyone. Shingen just shook his head with a knowing look on his face.

* * *

"Fine work indeed, Nya. Fine work indeed," Shingen said later as we were standing outside Terrera Castle. "However, I must say I have seen that move before. Have you been in recent contact with Aya again?"

"Well… I may or may not have spoken with Aya about strategies when I went to pay a visit to Illusio about a month ago," I said innocently as Glacier just rolled her eyes.

Shingen simply laughed at that. "I should have seen that coming!"

Yukimura looked ashamed at their loss despite his lord's reaction. "My deepest apologies, Lord Shingen. If I had just-"

"Forget it Yukimura," Shingen said cutting off his follower's remark with a look of utmost seriousness on his face. "Winning this battle was never my intention." Yukimura looked confused for some reason about this and Shingen continued speaking. "I was always planning to join young Nya here."

"As was I," a familiar sounding voice said from behind me.

"So there you are," Shingen mumbled. "I thought you might show up."

I turned around and saw one of the most pleasant sights I had seen in the last few weeks. A man in a whitish robe and black and gold armor, A woman with a creepily serene smile who was wearing a white robe with ice blue, black, and gold on the edges, and a man about my age wearing an all-too-familiar hat. "Kenshin, Aya, Nat!" I shouted half happy, and half surprised.

"Again with the nickname…" Kanetsugu said exasperated. This comment was promptly ignored by everyone except his Kadabra partner, who simply gave him a look that said, "It can't be helped."

Kenshin and Aya both then explained to me that both he and Shingen had planned to join my army, but a test of strength first seemed like a good idea. So the two of them decided that whoever's kingdom we came to first would turn us down, and send either Yukimura or from Kenshin's side, Aya, who of course was the only one beside both Kenshin and Shingen who knew what was going on, to battle us and report back. After that they would accept the next challenge whenever it came. I just shook my head in disbelief at this. I had a feeling that most of the plan was Aya's idea, but even so some things never change. Then everything went silent for a few moments. It was quickly broken, though, when Shingen spoke up.

"So it looks like we're heading for an all-out war with Nobunaga for control of Ransei."

Kenshin nodded. "Indeed. We will face battles more difficult than any we have experienced before…"

"Well," I started to say, "We've got some of Ransei's greatest warriors and strategists on our side. Plus we've been capable of putting aside our differences and working together, despite knowing that going against Nobunaga is pretty much pointless. That should count for something, right?" There were a few nods of approval from the warriors standing before me and a, "You need to work on your speeches" look from Glacier.

Then Oichi spoke up. "Yeah, but before we all start thinking about the upcoming battles…" She paused and gestured towards the dining hall of Terrera. There was a large feast set upon the table. Apparently we had been so caught up in our conversation that we hadn't even seen her walk off to prepare this. "Nagamasa and I set up a banquet for us to enjoy! We've invited all of the other warriors in our group, so please enjoy!"

* * *

The banquet was a nice moment of temporary peace, and certainly becoming a tradition for when we had truly accomplished something. At the moment I was catching up with Kenshin, Aya, and Kanetsugu once again, when suddenly the sky above the open roofed room grew dark. Storm clouds had quickly appeared with sounds of thunder crashing and the bright flashes of lightning. Luckily no rain though. Then a Zekrom descended from the storm clouds and on its back rode the Demon King himself. Oda Nobunaga. "The short life of a man is nothing compared to the infinite age of this world. It is but a fleeting dream. An illusion." He stated.

"B-brother!?" Oichi shouted out in shock.

"Wait, WHAT!?" Was all I could manage to think to say.

"What is it you desire?" Nobunaga asked of Oichi.

Oichi looked unsure of herself as she replied in a quiet voice, "I desire…" Then her resolve shone through her doubt and she began to speak more confidently. "I desire for Lady Nya to find the legendary Pokémon and bring peace to Ransei!"

Nobunaga began to laugh in his trademark way. "How amusing. I should like to see you try and make that wish come true. Defeat my subordinates and we shall see. Nobunaga will be waiting for you in Dragnor." And with that the sky cleared and he was gone.

* * *

Yeah I cliffhangered it, like I'm always telling my friends, writer's can be evil sometimes! Anyway... Now I'll answer reviews!

From Imperator Justinian: I've been looking forward to this chapter for quite some time, if only since no one has ever gotten to it in Pokémon Conquest fanfiction. You've also broken ground with the transformation scene, so congratulations on that (If Nya transformed mentally though, remains to be seen). Besides a few typos, this was a memorable chapter.

I'm pretty proud of getting this far myself. For a while when I first started this story about a year ago I almost gave up on it! Any mental transformation from Nya probably won't occur until the second story, and even so she might no really change that much. (She does have Glacier as a partner after all!) And I have a friend proofreading for me now so there shouldn't be too many typos after this! And thanks for mentioning them, I didn't really notice any until after you did and I went back through it! (I fixed the ones in the previous chapter so it should be a little better now!)


	27. Chapter 27

Yay! I finally wrote this chapter! Took a while due to school work but I finally got around to it! This story will take a momentary pause since I promised a few people I would update _The New Legends _and I'm also working on a Gracia and Ranmaru friendship one-shot. Updates should resume after those though.

I think that's about all I had to say, except for that you will see some Pokemon that do not appear in-game in this chapter.

Without farther ado, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"You're Oda Nobunaga's sister!?" I shouted, half out of anger and the other half out of surprise.

Oichi took a small step back, and then turned her head to the ground. "I'm sorry…" she said timidly. "I should have told you sooner…"

"Yes, you should have! How could you not!?"

Nagamasa walked over and put a comforting hand on Oichi's shoulder as he spoke up next. "Perhaps she didn't tell you because she thought you wouldn't trust her. Would you have allowed Oichi to join and help you like you had if she had been honest from the start?"

It was my turn to grow quiet and glance down at the ground. Nagamasa was right. I wouldn't have trusted her if I had known that truth. "I'm sorry Oichi; that was out of line." Then I glanced up with a hopeful and sheepish look on my face as I held out a hand. "Still friends?"

Oichi smiled and took the hand that I held out in her own. "Of course, Nya. However, you're still correct. I should've been more honest earlier. By the time we were talking about our pasts what now feels so long ago on that day in Greenleaf, well, we had mutual trust then. Right then I could've been completely honest, but I wasn't. I was scared. So even though I know you know, I'll be completely honest now. Oda Nobunaga is my brother. That's how I know that he's serious."

Oichi's voice seemed to falter slightly as she paused for a second. Nagamasa's hand moved from her shoulder to her hand, which both held the other's tightly. "Nya, we must stop Nobunaga," Nagamasa said. "He'll destroy Ransei if we don't, and we can't just allow that to happen. That's why both Oichi and I made the decision to join you. We knew it was going to be tough, and we might face great pain, both emotional and physical, but despite that, we knew that we had to. That we would have to fight against the warriors of Nobunaga's army at your side, Lady Nya."

It went silent for a few moments, and then a calm and serene voice spoke up from behind us. "We're here for you as well, Nya." Standing behind me were Aya with her trademark smile, Kanetsugu with a goofy grin as he gave a simple nod in agreement, and Kenshin with an unreadable expression.

"As are we." Standing next to the three of them were Shingen whose cheerful smile greatly contrasted his stoic rival, Yukimura who seemed incapable of smiling as he gave a nod, and Kunoichi who shouted a simple "YEAH!" as she raised a fist to the sky.

"Hey, and don't forget us!" Hanbei said, grinning as he walked over with the near-emotionless Kanbei, and the sheepish-looking Motonari. "Where would you be without your three brilliant strategists?"

Motochika walked up as the representative of the rest of the army gathered here. "We all hear the rhythm of your soul, Nya. We hear it as it flows through and inspires us to follow your lead as we always will."

I blinked a little, trying not to cry. If I did cry, though, they wouldn't be tears of sadness. No. They would be tears of utmost happiness. Happiness to have so many loyal followers and friends who were willing to stand by me to the bitter end. I had set out to become warlord of Aurora simply to defeat Nobunaga. I had no idea that this path would lead me this far. This far down the longest and most wonderful and rewarding road I could ever travel down.

"So what's the plan, Lady Nya?" Kanetsugu asked, joking and bowing a little.

"Oh, would you stop that?" I said as I lightly hit him on the head. "You know I prefer to go by just Nya! Anyway, our main objective should be to capture the kingdoms of southeastern Ransei. Cragspur, Avia, Viperia, and Yaksha are the gateways to northeastern Ransei, thus capturing these will bring us four steps closer to our goal."

"I guess tomorrow morning we'll go and get to work on a strategy then." Hanbei said as he left the room with Motonari and Kanbei.

"All right then, while those three are working on the battle and capture strategy tomorrow, the rest of you should prepare for the battles. And I mean all of you since we still don't know who's coming, understood?" Everyone nodded at the last part. "Good. Then you're all dismissed."

* * *

Glacier and I woke up early that morning and immediately went to the meeting hall of Terrera to look over the map. Cragspur, from what I knew, was a tricky place to fight in. The offensive group started out in a box-like formation formed rocks to which the only way out of was a switch within. The defensive group started at the top of a steep hill from which rocks could be sent rolling down from the top toward their attackers, thus immediately putting us at a disadvantage from the start. These factors made Cragspur a defense-based kingdom and somewhat difficult to take. And I know that technically the strategy portion was Hanbei, Kanbei, and Motonari's job, but a leader of an army should also take the responsibility to look over the terrain as well. I was going to look over it for a while longer but then I heard an almost silent knock coming from the open door. I looked up and saw Rikyu standing in the doorway with his staff in one hand, a book in the other, and Pansage sitting on his shoulder. "Oh, hello Rikyu. What can I do for you?"

"Lady Nya," he started to say in his soft voice, "In the deserts of Terrera there is a rare herb that is great for healing certain things." He walked over and flipped open the pages of his book to show me. "However, the place where it is at is right in the middle of an area inhabited by a species of Pokémon that is not very common to Ransei. I was going to ask one of the other warriors to accompany me, but they are all off doing their preparations for the next battle. So, Lady Nya, I would be grateful to you if you would be willing to lend me a hand."

I looked over at Glacier for her opinion and she nodded in agreement. I personally thought she was just getting bored with map examining, but either way I was willing to help my friend. "Okay, let's go to the stables first and get our Ponyta. Then you can lead the way to this spot."

* * *

The ride through the desert was somewhat long and the heat made it exhausting for both Ta and Rikyu's Ponyta. Luckily along the way we found an oasis where we could allow our partners to have a water break. While we stopped though a question came into my head. "Rikyu, I see that you brought Darumaka along as well as Pansage. Just what kind of Pokémon lives in that place?"

"Cacturne." He replied simply. "Cacnea and Cacturne. At least according to the stories that is."

"Cacnea and Cacturne? Those are new to me."

"Cacturne is a Grass/Dark type and its pre-evolved form, Cacnea, is a pure Grass-type. Both of them are some of the few Grass-types that can thrive in deserts as they don't need as much of a water supply as others. Cacturne, however, have a tendency to not like intruders and can be territorial from time to time. Especially since this plant is very precious to them."

I shook my head rapidly at that last comment. "All right, if this is as bad as you're implying, then why in the name of Arceus are we going after this thing in the first place?"

Rikyu sighed a little at that. "The plant is the main ingredient in a burn-healing tonic that's more powerful than a Burn Heal or Full Heal. It can cure the burning status condition of a Pokémon or the burns of any sort on a human in the blink of an eye, thus making it an extremely important thing to have on hand."

"Okay then, I suppose we should continue the journey there then." _This _really _better be worth it…_

* * *

We finally arrived at the place at about midday. The plant that Rikyu had been talking about was growing in the center of a forest of cacti. Before we could even take one step though, a creepy laughter could be heard all throughout the strange forest. "This does not sound good. Get ready Glacier!" Glacier immediately crouched into a defensive position as the creepy laughter seemed to intensify. Suddenly the area around us seemed to grow darker, and though while I convinced myself that it surely had to be an illusion, I knew for a near-sure fact that it was not. "Darumaka, Sunny Day! Pansage, use Solar Beam!" Rikyu called out as the two rapid attacks lit up the area, revealing a group of both large and small semi-blinded cactus Pokémon. The larger ones had a far more sinister appearance than their smaller counterparts, but I could take a guess on what they were.

"Let me guess, these are Cacnea and Cacturne?" I asked as Rikyu nodded tightly, clutching his shakujō. "Get to it on collecting that plant then! We'll hold them off!" Rikyu then gave a quick nod and ran over to where the plant was growing. His Pokémon swiftly followed but he shooed Darumaka away. "Go lend aid to Lady Nya." He stated to the little Fire-type who ran back over to Glacier and me.

While I thought that taking down the cactus/lantern-like Pokémon would be easy, like most things in life, it was the exact opposite. While taking one of them down was a piece of cake, the whole hoard of them complicated things quite a bit. After one was defeated, another would swiftly appear, after that one yet another, and after that one, once again, another would step up. For both Glacier and Darumaka, it was rapidly exhausting their strength. Eventually when it looked like they wouldn't last though another bout I resorted to panic. "GET THE DARNED PLANT RIKYU!" I shouted towards the healer. "I've almost got enough!" He quietly called back, then about ten seconds later, a shout of "got it!" was heard, and we quickly got onto our Ponytas. "Ta! Use Fire Blast!" I shouted out as my partner Pokémon quickly fired a large blast of flame at the living cacti.

As we were a safe enough distance away, I slapped my palm against my forehead in a sudden moment of realization. "Why didn't we just do that in the first place!?" Glacier nodded and gave me a glare as if to say, "Yeah, why didn't you?"

"There is actually a very good reason, Lady Nya. A large fire attack like that could have damaged the very plant we had come here for, thus making that a foolish move to make if we were to have done it from the start," Rikyu kindly responded.

"I suppose you're right. Oh well! At least we made it out okay." That earned another glare from Glacier. "Well, mostly okay."

* * *

After both Rikyu and I and everyone else arrived back at the castle, it was beginning to get close to nightfall. All of us then ate a quick dinner and headed to the meeting hall for a strategy meeting for our attack on Cragspur. As I stated before, the rocky and mountainous terrain of the Rock-type kingdom made any attack rather difficult, so that had become the main point of our discussion. At the start, the challengers were always at the low points of the steep hills, so we first had to figure out what to do about the boulder attacks. The easiest plan of course was to simply avoid them, but a situation may arise where one would find avoiding them impossible, so a back-up plan was certainly in order. It was Motonari who suggested the first plan. "What if we went in teams of two out of the starting point? There will be six of us in the attack and three gates."

"That will certainly help, but how do you propose we deal with the boulder attacks?" I asked. "While it's not guaranteed that they will use them, it's certainly a good use of defense without having to get close to us, which in turn makes it very likely that they will use such a tactic."

"I have never heard of anyone trying this so it may not work, but what if we attack the boulders with a powerful Water-type or Fighting-type move?" Was Motonari's response, which earned a slight amount of criticism from both Hanbei and Kanbei.

"An untested plan such as that may be a risky move, seeing as we don't know how it will work, or in fact if it even will." Kanbei stated.

"Yes, and even so it should be a last resort plan for if you truly can't avoid getting hit," Hanbei concluded.

"That's okay on the last resort part," I said. "That is what we were looking for in the plan anyway. My only question, is will a powerful physical attack work instead of a Fighting-type move?"

"If it is strong enough to shatter a rock that's rapidly rolling down a hill towards you, then yes. A Psychic-type may also be good since they can stop it mid-roll." Motonari replied.

"Good. Now all that's left is to decide who will come along. Since we obviously need a Water-type user, Motochika, you for sure will be coming along. Motonari, your Servine will also be incredibly effective, so I'll have you join up as well. Kenshin, Kanetsugu, Gallade and Kadabra will be essential for stopping boulders, so it would be great if you two will come. And Oichi, as always since you're one of our group's best healers, you'll be joining the attack as well. As for Illusio and Terrera, they'll need to be defended while we're gone so as to make sure that our enemies don't capture them in our absence and gain access to the rest of our kingdoms. Shingen, Yukimura, Kunoichi, Sakon, Katsuyori, and Kanbei will be in charge of Terrera's defense while Aya, Kagekatsu, Rikyu, Nagamasa, Ginchiyo, and Hanbei will be in charge of Illusio's defense. The rest of you, as always, may disperse throughout the kingdoms under our control as you wish, so long as there are at least two warriors per kingdom. Understood?" Everyone nodded in response to the last part of the commands. "Good. All of you are to head to your places in the morning when we leave for Cragspur. For now though, you're all dismissed."

* * *

The next morning the group heading to Cragspur gathered what they needed and we headed out on the three day ride there. It was a pretty calm ride for the first day. There were no random Pokémon attacks as there usually were, and no other crazy occurrences as well. Oichi, Kanetsugu, and I simply discussed random things to pass the time, Motochika was playing his shamisen, (I still don't know how he managed to do so while riding on a Ponyta) Motonari was quietly reading a book with Servine, (again I have no idea how he can manage to hold onto Ponyta's reins and read at the same time) and Kenshin just rode along as silent as ever. Unlike the forest paths that we had mostly taken up until now, there really wasn't much in the way of "sight-seeing" to be done as we rode through Terrera's desert. It was even more difficult to find a decent place to camp for the night. Eventually though, about halfway through the desert path to Cragspur, (halfway according to the map that is) we found an encirclement of rocks that would serve as a decent sheltered area to pitch up our tents for the night.

Despite it being pretty safe in this area we decided to take watches in pairs anyway just to be on the safe-side. The partner groups were the ones who would be in the next battle along-side each other, which meant Kenshin and Oichi, (who were taking the last watch) Kanetsugu and I, (who were taking the second watch) and Motonari and Motchika (who were taking the first watch). Nothing had apparently happened on the first watch since the only time we were woken up was when Oichi and Kenshin told us it was our turn, but on our watch something did happen. Not a bad something though, or necessarily a good something, just, something. As I was stargazing I saw a small flicker of orange light in the sky, and next to it was a whitish flicker. For stars a white gleam was pretty normal to see, but the orange certainly wasn't. Kanetsugu had seen it as well and quickly asked Kadabra to see if it could figure out what it was using its Psychic abilities. We ended up not having to do that though, because the faint lights began to draw nearer. Eventually they came into view and I saw that they were two Pokémon. One was a white colored Pokémon in the shape of a crescent moon, which from my time that I spent in Illusio, I recognized as Lunatone, but the golden and orange tinted sun shaped Pokémon was new to me. "It's a Lunatone and Solrock." Kanetsugu said. "Remember when we asked Aya and Kenshin about these two? Kenshin told us that Lunatone could only be found in Illusio, and Aya said that Solrock could only be seen in Terrera. Seeing both of them here like this is a rare occurrence indeed!"

"You know, when Kenshin and Aya first told us about Solrock and Lunatone, I always thought that they lived in opposite kingdoms because the two didn't like each other."

Kanetsugu looked slightly puzzled when I made that statement. "What made you think that?"

"When the sun comes out during the day, it dims the light from the moon. However, when the sun fades into the night the moon is allowed to shine freely. But perhaps they are only balancing each other. Perhaps the moon and the sun get along and rule the sky in turns so one doesn't wear itself down too much and the other gives it a break. And maybe by seeing the two working together who I used to think were rivals and enemies floating peacefully together is a lesson that's trying to be taught." I looked over at Kanetsugu who was just smiling. "I don't get what's so funny about what I just said."

"You always have been one for over-thinking things, haven't you, Nya?"

"Oh, I don't always over-think things, Nat!"

"You do a lot though! But, you know what? Perhaps you're right about those two Pokémon. I did think the same thing you did about Solrock and Lunatone at first, but now? Now I think we both may have been wrong."

After that things fell silent between the two of us as we just watched the two Pokémon glowing and gently floating above us. Eventually their glows disappeared and it was Motonari and Motochika's turn to stand guard until tomorrow morning.

* * *

The next two days followed the same routine. Wake up, eat a quick breakfast, start riding again, take a rest at mid-day, keep riding, stop and set up camp, sleep and take watches, and repeat. On the morning of the fourth day after three days of travel, the mountainous kingdom was right within our sights! _All right, Cragspur Castle here we come!_

* * *

I don't really have any end-notes this time so I'll go straight to review answering.

From Imperator Justinian: Well, I must say I liked the part about the Swords of Justice, it's always nice to see you add in a bit to the plot, which is something that makes this story different from the game and other stories. My only complaint is that Nobunaga's appearance seemed a bit to short in that no one else reacted or did anything, but then again that's what happened in game.

Thank you on the Swords of Justice (why do I always think that Kanetsugu came up with that name) part! While it does set up the final story in this trilogy, I really wasn't sure that it was a good idea to put it into the plot this early. I'm glad that it seemed to work and helped to add to the story in a good way. And I do agree that the part with Nobunaga was very short, and I truly wanted to make it longer, but since that's how it happened in the game, I really wanted to make that one of the few plot pints left unchanged.

As a final note, please feel free to leave reviews! Just a simple "Hey, I like your story," or a nice little on thing on how it can be improved if there's something that could be really helps me want to keep writing. (No flames though, those will not be tolerated here! Or trolls for that matter, I have sadly seen this happen with other stories!)


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